Glossary
Tire Technician Terms & Vocabulary
15 essential tire technician terms with plain-English definitions: the vocabulary you’ll hear in training and on day one.
Key tire technician vocabulary
These 15 terms come up constantly in tire technician training, on the job and in interviews. Knowing them helps you follow instructions, document accurately and sound prepared.
- Balancing
- Even weight distribution.
- Bead
- Edge of a tire that seals.
- DOT code
- Tire date and maker code.
- Inflation cage
- Safety cage for big tires.
- Load rating
- Weight capacity.
- Low-profile tire
- Short sidewall tire.
- Lug nut
- Wheel fastener.
- Plug-patch
- Inside repair for punctures.
- Rotation
- Moving tires to even wear.
- Run-flat
- Tire usable after puncture.
- Sidewall
- Side of a tire.
- Torque
- Tightening force.
- TPMS
- Tire pressure monitoring system.
- Tread depth
- Groove depth.
- Wheel weight
- Balance weight.
Practice these terms
Test yourself with the free Tire Technician practice test: it includes vocabulary questions built from this list. For a complete course, see Tire Technician training.
Browse terms from every career in our career glossary.