Noun

1. The right to proceed first in traffic.
   • 1. A legal right of passage over another's land or pathways.
        • 2000, "Countryside and Rights of Way Act (2000) (c.37)" (UK), II.48(4)^{http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2000/ukpga_20000037_en_5#pt2},

          “restricted byway” means a highway over which the public have restricted byway rights, with or without a right to drive animals of any description along the highway, but no other rights of way.

     2. A legal easement granted for the construction of a roadway or railway.
        • 1. Land on which a right of way exists.
             • 1. The area modified for passage of a railway; often specifically the railbed and tracks.
                  • 1. • 1. The priority granted to the first person to properly execute an attack.
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                              Usage notes

                              • The plural "rights of way" can be used for all senses. The alternative plural "right of ways" is generally used only when referring to an easement or a physical stretch of land, and may be regarded as an error.