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
1
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
Words nearby tier
tie one's hands, tiepin, tie plate, tie plug, Tiepolo, tier, tierce, tierced, tierce de Picardie, tiercel, tierceron
Definition for tier (2 of 2)
tier2
[ tahy-er ]
/ ˈtaɪ ər /
noun
a person or thing that ties.
Nautical. a short rope or band for securing a furled sail.
Teams in the next group all have at least a 1 percent chance to win the title — but all are also clearly in a lower tier than the top three.
Who Made The Most Of The NBA Restart?|Neil Paine (neil.paine@fivethirtyeight.com)|August 19, 2020|FiveThirtyEight
The bottom performance tier of lefties, unsurprisingly, trails even further behind.
What Really Gives Left-Handed Pitchers Their Edge?|Guy Molyneux|August 17, 2020|FiveThirtyEight
The FT is planning another Global Boardroom event in November but with free and ticketed tiers starting at $65.
‘Lots of halo effects’: The Financial Times’ virtual lifestyle festival pivots focus to U.S., global audience|Lucinda Southern|August 14, 2020|Digiday
The next tier of distribution broadly depends on whether the US chooses to prioritize recipients’ personal risk or potential to spread the disease.
Once US healthcare workers get a coronavirus vaccine, who will be next?|Olivia Goldhill|August 12, 2020|Quartz
Now, with Bogdanović out and the Jazz needing to alter how they play, Mitchell has an opportunity to progress in areas that can nudge this team back toward the doorstep of a higher tier.
Can Donovan Mitchell Reach His Potential In The Bubble?|Michael Pina|August 3, 2020|FiveThirtyEight
YouTube is already part of their mainstream culture, rather than being this second tier of media.
YouTube, Netflix, and the Death of Television|Rich Goldstein|November 14, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Minority students at a second or third tier school are dealing with much bigger gaps.
Affirmative Action: Who Does it Help, Who Does it Hurt?|Megan McArdle|June 24, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Megan: What happens to people who graduate from second or third tier schools?
The Perils of Law School|Megan McArdle|September 24, 2012|DAILY BEAST
If he can temper those tendencies, the debate could propel him to the first tier of the race.
GOP Debate: 5 Things to Watch|David A. Graham|November 9, 2011|DAILY BEAST
So how might the members of our Republican second tier make their precious moments on camera sparkle?
How Michele Gets Her Groove Back|Matt Latimer|September 22, 2011|DAILY BEAST
The casemates (gunrooms) of the lower tier on the left flank were surmounted by a second tier identical in appearance.
Fort Sumter National Monument, South Carolina|Frank Barnes
The nest was ovate, about an inch and a half long, with a tier of cells internally, originating from a common pedicle.
Insect Architecture|James Rennie
One tier was near the top of the bluff, another about halfway down from the summit to the water.
A Daughter of the Union|Lucy Foster Madison
The first tier was notched into the green sward, and the second tier was nine inches below it.
On Some Ancient Battle-Fields in Lancashire|Charles Hardwick
She had only one tier of guns on the upper-deck, as ports were not used in those days.
How Britannia Came to Rule the Waves|W.H.G. Kingston
British Dictionary definitions for tier (1 of 2)
tier1
/ (tɪə) /
noun
one of a set of rows placed one above and behind the other, such as theatre seats
a layer or level
(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