tier

¹

[teer]

noun

1. one of a series of rows or ranks rising one behind or above another, as of seats in an amphitheater, boxes in a theater, guns in a man-of-war, or oars in an ancient galley.

2. one of a number of galleries, as in a theater.

3. a layer; level; stratum.

   The wedding cake had six tiers.

   All three tiers of the firm's management now report to one director.

4. Australian.,  a mountain range.

verb (used with object)

1. to arrange in tiers.

verb (used without object)

1. to rise in tiers.

tier

²

[tahy-er]

noun

1. a person or thing that ties.

2. Nautical.,  a short rope or band for securing a furled sail.

3. New England.,  a child's apron or pinafore.

tier

¹

/ tɪə /

noun

1. one of a set of rows placed one above and behind the other, such as theatre seats

2. 1. a layer or level

   2. ( in combination )

      a three-tier cake

3. a rank, order, or row

verb

1. to be or arrange in tiers

tier

²

/ ˈtaɪə /

noun

1. a person or thing that ties

Word History and Origins

Origin of tier¹

First recorded in 1560–70; earlier also tire, tyre, teare, from Middle French, Old French tire, tiere “order, row, rank,” from Germanic; compare Old English, Old Saxon tīr, Old High German zēri “glory, adornment”

Origin of tier²

First recorded in 1625–35; tie + -er ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of tier¹

C16: from Old French tire rank, of Germanic origin; compare Old English tīr embellishment

Example Sentences

Eighteen of the top 20 schools are the same, with a wide variety of colleges, including large public schools, small private schools, technology institutes and liberal-arts colleges in this upper tier.

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On a second tier of AI savvy, workers can rake in close to $1 million a year.

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Members can join for an initiation fee starting at $5,000, plus monthly dues of at least $425, depending on membership tier.

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I think they have very similar characteristics to some of the large tier 2 cloud service provider customers.

Read more on Barron's

You can find your drugs on the plan’s formulary—the list of covered drugs—and compare that against the costs outlined for each coverage tier in your annual notice of change.

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• category 
• layer 
• row