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tire

 - 9 dictionary results

tire

1[tahyuhr] ,verb, tired, tir⋅ing, noun
–verb (used with object)
1. to reduce or exhaust the strength of, as by exertion; make weary; fatigue: The long walk tired him.
2. to exhaust the interest, patience, etc., of; make weary; bore: Your stories tire me.
–verb (used without object)
3. to have the strength reduced or exhausted, as by labor or exertion; become fatigued; be sleepy.
4. to have one's appreciation, interest, patience, etc., exhausted; become or be weary; become bored (usually fol. by of): He soon tired of playing billiards.
–noun
5. British Dialect. fatigue.

Origin:
bef. 900; late ME (Scots) tyren (v.), OE tȳrian, var. of tēorian to weary, be wearied


2. exasperate, irk.

tire

2[tahyuhr] ,noun, verb, tired, tir⋅ing.
–noun
1. a ring or band of rubber, either solid or hollow and inflated, or of metal, placed over the rim of a wheel to provide traction, resistance to wear, or other desirable properties.
2. a metal band attached to the outside of the felloes and forming the tread of a wagon wheel.
–verb (used with object)
3. to furnish with tires.
Also, British, tyre.


Origin:
1475–85; special use of tire 3

tire

3[tahyuhr] ,verb, tired, tir⋅ing, noun
–verb (used with object)
1. Archaic. to dress (the head or hair), esp. with a headdress.
2. Obsolete. to attire or array.
–noun
3. Archaic. a headdress.
4. Obsolete. attire or dress.

Origin:
1300–50; ME; aph. var. of attire
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To tire
tire 1   (tīr)   
v.   tired, tir·ing, tires

v.   intr.
  1. To grow weary.

  2. To grow bored or impatient.

v.   tr.
  1. To diminish the strength or energy of; fatigue.

  2. To exhaust the interest or patience of; bore.


[Middle English tiren, from Old English tēorian, tyrian; see deu-1 in Indo-European roots.]
Synonyms: These verbs mean to cause or undergo depletion of strength, energy, spirit, interest, or patience. Tire often suggests a state resulting from exertion, excess, dullness, or ennui: "When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life" (Samuel Johnson).
Weary often implies dissatisfaction, as that resulting from what is irksome or boring: found the long journey wearying; soon wearied of their constant bickering.
Fatigue implies great weariness, as that caused by stress or overwork: "fatigued by an endless rotation of thought and wild alarms" (Mary Wollstonecraft).
To exhaust means to wear out completely, and it connotes total draining of physical or emotional strength: "Like all people who try to exhaust a subject, he exhausted his listeners" (Oscar Wilde).
Jade refers principally to dullness that most often results from overindulgence: "Contemplation of works of art without understanding them jades the faculties and enslaves the intelligence" (John Ruskin).
tire 2   (tīr)   
n.  
  1. A covering for a wheel, usually made of rubber reinforced with cords of nylon, fiberglass, or other material and filled with compressed air.

  2. A hoop of metal or rubber fitted around a wheel.


[Middle English, iron rim of a wheel, probably from tir, attire, short for atire, from attiren, to attire; see attire.]
tire 3   (tīr)   
tr.v.   tired, tir·ing, tires
To adorn or attire.
n.  
  1. Attire.

  2. A headband or headdress.


[Middle English tiren, short for attiren, to attire; see attire.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

tire  (v.)
"to weary," also "to become weary," O.E. teorian (Kentish tiorian), of unknown origin, not found outside English. The pp. adj. tired is attested from c.1400; tiresome "tedious" is first recorded 1500.

tire  (n.)
1485, "iron rim of a carriage wheel," probably from tire "equipment, dress, covering" (c.1300), an aphetic form of attire. The notion is of the tire as the dressing of the wheel. The original spelling was tyre, which had shifted to tire in 17c.-18c., but since early 19c. tyre has been revived in Great Britain and become standard there. Rubber ones, for bicycles (later automobiles) are from 1870s.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: tire
Pronunciation: 'tI(&)r
Function: verb
Inflected Forms: tired; tir·ing
intransitive senses
: tobecome weary tire transitive senses
: to exhaust or greatly decrease the physical strength of : FATIGUE
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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