right of way

American  

Or right-of-way

noun

plural

rights of way, right of ways

1. a common law or statutory right granted to a vehicle, as an airplane or boat, to proceed ahead of another.

2. a path or route that may lawfully be used.

3. a right of passage, as over another's land.

4. the strip of land acquired for use by a railroad for tracks.

5. land covered by a public road.

6. land over which a power line passes.

7. Fencing. the right to attack or continue an attack, and thus to be credited with a hit, by virtue of having first extended the sword arm or having parried the opponent's attack.

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right of way British  

noun

1. the right of one vehicle or vessel to take precedence over another, as laid down by law or custom

2. 1. the legal right of someone to pass over another's land, acquired by grant or by long usage

   2. the path or road used by this right

3. the strip of land over which a power line, railway line, road, etc, extends

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right of way Idioms  

1. The right of one person or vehicle to travel over another's property, as in The new owner doesn't like it, but hikers have had the right of way through these woods for decades . [Mid-1700s]

2. The right to precede another person or vehicle, as in Sailboats always have the right of way over motorboats, and swimmers do over any kind of boat . [Early 1900s]

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Etymology

Origin of right of way

First recorded in 1760–70

Example Sentences

"It was supposed to be for public amenity, they were going to reinstate all the rights of way and agricultural use," said Chris Austin, who lives nearby.

From BBC

It added: "The cyclist had right of way and a moment of carelessness from the driver, by not properly checking the road was clear to cross, has had a life changing impact on the cyclist."

From BBC

"Nobody owns the sand, the sand is a natural public right of way," says Suzanne McGowan who has lived in Sandbanks since 1992 and has walked her dogs in the area daily.

From BBC

The robots swarming around look like electric orange self-driving lawn mowers in a coordinated dance, giving one another the right of way.

From The Wall Street Journal

They’re dirt and sand roads, but there’s intersections, there’s right of way.

From The Wall Street Journal