'tyre' (noun) originates from Middle English, ultimately from Old French/Anglo-French related to 'attire' (to fit or equip), where the element related to fitting meant 'to arrange or fit around.'

'attire' and related Old French forms (meaning 'to fit or equip') influenced Middle English 'tyre' (or 'tir(e)') used for a band or rim fitted around a wheel; this developed into the modern English 'tyre' for the rubber covering.

Initially it referred to the act of fitting a reinforcing band or the band itself; over time it came to denote specifically the rubber covering fitted to a wheel.