pathway

American  

[path-wey, pahth-] / ˈpæθˌweɪ, ˈpɑθ- /

noun

1. a path, course, route, or way.

2. Biochemistry. a sequence of reactions, usually controlled and catalyzed by enzymes, by which one organic substance is converted to another.

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pathway British  

/ ˈpɑːθˌweɪ /

noun

1. another word for path path

2. a route to or way of access to; way of reaching or achieving something

3. courses taken by a student to gain entry to a higher course or towards a final qualification

4. biochem a chain of reactions associated with a particular metabolic process

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pathway Scientific  

/ păth′wā′ /

1. A chain of nerve fibers along which impulses normally travel.

2. A sequence of enzymatic or other reactions by which one biological material is converted to another.

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Other Word Forms

• pathwayed
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of pathway

First recorded in 1530–40; path + way ¹

Explanation

A pathway is a trail or other walkway. Hikers often follow a well-worn pathway as they walk through the woods. Use the noun pathway to mean a walk, path, or trail — any marked way that's meant or used for walking. The pathway you follow on your way to school might lead you over a stream and through a field, or it might meander down a narrow city alley. Pathway is essentially a longer, redundant way to say "path," and in fact it comes from path and its Old English root pæþ, "path or track," which has a Germanic origin.

Example Sentences

But his inquiry illuminates one possible pathway through the mirrored hallways where history and myth reflect and distort each other in seeming perpetuity.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 28, 2026

The second pathway acts more slowly through hormones circulating in the body, helping sustain protein-seeking behavior over a longer period.

From Science Daily • May 28, 2026

Scientists increasingly view this pathway as a key driver of inflammation and fibrosis in MASH.

From Science Daily • May 27, 2026

She went back to the GP, who put her on the urgent cancer pathway again.

From BBC • May 26, 2026

And I pictured him running down that pathway in the valley with his own hound of heaven at his heels.

From "Rebecca" by Daphne du Maurier

Related Words

• artery
• asphalt
• avenue
• boulevard
• byway
• expressway
• freeway
• highway
• lane
• parking lot
• path
• pavement
• route
• street
• subway
• superhighway
• terrace
• thoroughfare
• turnpike
• viaduct