means

Compared meaning: a method of doing something (noun).

比较义项：方法（n.）。

• way

  The general, everyday word for a method or manner of doing something; informal, wide collocational range (find a way, a way of life), used in casual and formal speech alike.

  最普通、口语化的词，指做某事的方法或方式；用法灵活，搭配范围广（find a way, a way of life），在口语和书面语中都常用。

  There must be a quicker way to get downtown during rush hour.

  高峰时段去市中心肯定有更快的方法。

• means 本词

  More formal; emphasizes the instrument, resource or capability used to reach a goal, often paired with 'of doing something' or 'by means of'; same form in singular and plural.

  更正式，强调为达成目标所依靠的手段、工具或资源，常与“of doing something”或“by means of”搭配；单复数同形。

  The company lacks the means to launch such an expensive campaign.

  这家公司没有足够的手段来发起这样一场昂贵的宣传活动。

Way and means both can mean a method of doing something. Way is the general, everyday word, used in many phrases like 'a way of life'. Means is more formal, stressing the tool or resource used to reach a goal, as in 'by means of'.

两个词在“做某事的方法”这一义项上很接近，但 means 更正式，强调达成目的所依靠的手段或资源，常用于书面语和“by means of”这类固定搭配；way 是最普通、口语化的说法，搭配范围更广（a way of life, no way 等）。这里不比较 way 在“方式，样子”等其他泛化用法中的意思。