byway

noun

by·​way ˈbī-ˌwā 

1

: a little traveled side road

2

: a secondary or little known aspect or field

… meandering more and more in the fascinating byways of learning.

—The Times Literary Supplement (London)

Examples of byway in a Sentence

I prefer to take byways to town.

He's traveled the highways and byways of this country.

the byways of the art world

The book chronicles some of the interesting byways of legal history.

Recent Examples on the Web

Exploring the massive footprint, and the almost labyrinthian byways, of the Funko book at the San Diego Convention Center. — Borys Kit, HollywoodReporter, 23 June 2026

Today, the southernmost section of the 395 no longer exists, having been cut off by more modern byways. — Chelsee Lowe, Travel + Leisure, 22 June 2026

Ziller said the working group for the scenic byway held its first meeting May 19. — Doug Ross, Chicago Tribune, 16 June 2026

Since the early 1960s, her drawings, watercolors, acrylics, and collages have run like scenic byways along the whooshing turnpike of contemporary art. — Jeremy Lybarger, Artforum, 2 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for byway

• airway
• allay
• archway
• array
• ashtray
• assez
• astray
• aue
• away
• ballet
• belay
• beltway

Kids Definition

byway

noun

by·​way ˈbī-ˌwā 

: a little-traveled side road