Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A road, path, or highway affording passage from one place to another.
  • noun An opening affording passage.
  • noun Space to proceed.
  • noun Opportunity to advance.
  • noun A course that is or may be used in going from one place to another.
  • noun Progress or travel along a certain route or in a specific direction.
  • noun Informal Distance.
  • noun A course of conduct or action.
  • noun A manner or method of doing something: synonym: method.
  • noun Used with a personal pronoun as the object of various verbs to indicate progress toward an objective.
  • noun A usual or habitual manner or mode of being, living, or acting.
  • noun An individual or personal manner of behaving, acting, or doing.
  • noun A specific direction.
  • noun A participant. Often used in combination.
  • noun An aspect, particular, or feature.
  • noun Nature or category.
  • noun Freedom to do as one wishes.
  • noun An aptitude or facility.
  • noun A state or condition.
  • noun Vicinity.
  • noun A longitudinal strip on a surface that serves to guide a moving machine part.
  • noun Nautical The structure on which a ship is built and from which it slides when launched.
  • adverb Informal By a great distance or to a great degree; far.
  • adverb Slang Very; extremely.
  • adverb Informal From this place; away.
  • adverb Informal Used in response to no way to indicate affirmation contradicting a negative assertion.
  • idiom (all the way) From beginning to end; completely.
  • idiom (by the way) Incidentally.
  • idiom (by way of) Through; via.
  • idiom (by way of) As a means of.
  • idiom ((one's)/the) To inconvenience oneself in doing something beyond what is required.
  • idiom (in a way) To a certain extent; with reservations.
  • idiom (in a way) From one point of view.
  • idiom (in the way) In a position to obstruct, hinder, or interfere.
  • idiom (no way) Certainly not.
  • idiom ((one's)/the) In the process of coming, going, or traveling.
  • idiom (on the way) On the route of a journey.
  • idiom (out of the way) In such a position as not to obstruct, hinder, or interfere.
  • idiom (out of the way) Taken care of; disposed of.
  • idiom (out of the way) In a remote location.
  • idiom (out of the way) Of an unusual character; remarkable.
  • idiom (out of the way) Improper; amiss.
  • idiom (the way) In the manner that.
  • idiom (under way) In motion or operation.

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English, from Old English weg; see wegh- in Indo-European roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Old English weġ, from Proto-Germanic *wegaz, from Proto-Indo-European *weǵʰ-. Cognate with Dutch weg, German Weg, Swedish väg, Latin vehō, via, Albanian udhë.

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Examples

Comments

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  • Sounds like "buey" in Spanish. Makes my students giggle.

    July 4, 2007

  • Yaw in reverse.

    November 3, 2007

  • An affirmative:

    "No way!"

    "Way."

    April 17, 2008