tier

[teer]

noun

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.
one of a number of galleries, as in a theater.
a layer; level; stratum: The wedding cake had six tiers. All three tiers of the firm's management now report to one director.

Australian. a mountain range.

verb (used with object)

to arrange in tiers.

verb (used without object)

to rise in tiers.

Origin of tier

1560–70; earlier also tire, tyre, teare < Middle French, Old French tire, tiere order, row, rank < Germanic; compare Old English, Old Saxon tīr, Old High German zēri glory, adornment

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for tiering

Historical Examples of tiering

A foot above the top of these, another line may be made; and so on, tiering them up to the height intended to devote to them.
Rural Architecture
Lewis Falley Allen

British Dictionary definitions for tiering

tier

noun

one of a set of rows placed one above and behind the other, such as theatre seats
1. a layer or level
2. (in combination)a three-tier cake
a rank, order, or row

verb

to be or arrange in tiers

Word Origin for tier

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

tier

noun

a person or thing that ties

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for tiering

tier

"row, rank, range," 1560s, from Middle French tire, from Old French tire "rank, sequence, order" (early 13c.), probably from tirer "to draw, draw out" (see tirade). Some suggests the French noun is from a Germanic source akin to Old High German ziari, German Zier "adornment," Old English tir "glory, honor."