wayside

noun

way·​side ˈwā-ˌsīd How to pronounce wayside (audio)
: the side of or land adjacent to a road or path
wayside adjective
Phrases
by the wayside
: out of consideration : into a condition of neglect or disuse
usually used with fall

Examples of wayside in a Sentence

Flowers grew along the wayside.
Recent Examples on the Web The former religious hypocrisy is mined for its inherent thematic tensions, but the latter storyline ends up falling by the wayside, as Bojanov frequently opts for dramatic implications, rather than detailed explorations. Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 17 May 2024 Once Covid hit in 2020, team meetings went virtual, and drinks with colleagues fell by the wayside. Rosalie R. Radomsky, New York Times, 10 May 2024 In the decades following the Jim Crow era, the home began to slowly fall to the wayside. Christina Liao, Travel + Leisure, 8 May 2024 That means some great work gets left by the wayside — but also, because the number of nominators is small enough to be idiosyncratic, that plenty of outcomes defy all prediction. Scott Heller, New York Times, 30 Apr. 2024 Climate change, reproductive rights, threats to democracy, are all going by the wayside in the 2024 campaign. USA TODAY, 19 Apr. 2024 Clarkson filed a response to the suit to the California Labor Commission in Nov. 2020 — but the dispute would fall by the wayside for the next three years. Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 18 Apr. 2024 No studio was attached to The Movie Critic, which becomes the latest project to fall by the wayside for Tarantino. Borys Kit, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Apr. 2024 While many people’s New Year’s resolutions to hit the gym more often have long since fallen by the wayside, Jelly Roll seems to be sticking to his commitment. Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 15 Apr. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'wayside.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of wayside was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near wayside

Cite this Entry

“Wayside.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wayside. Accessed 20 May. 2024.

Kids Definition

wayside

noun
way·​side ˈwā-ˌsīd How to pronounce wayside (audio)
: the side or border of a road or path
wayside adjective

More from Merriam-Webster on wayside

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