priority-n; 3 Senses

Sense Number 1: anything which is ranked as very important

Commentary: PRIORITY[+entity][+ranked][+important][+highly]
NOTE: can occur in the plural
NOTE: refers to the thing itself, not a status or attribute assigned to is. (Sense 2)

Examples:
Repairing the roof is on our list of priorities.
Reduced spending was not a priority of their administration.
Her children are her top priority.

Mappings:
WordNet 0.0 Sense Numbers: 1

Sense Number 2: the state of having important status

Commentary: PRIORITY[+state][+status][+ranked][+important]
NOTE: refers to a quality assigned to something, not the thing explicitly (see Sense 1)

Examples:
The safety of the passengers takes priority over ease of travel.
Priority will be given to those with press passes.
Clear the left lane for only the traffic with priority. (ambulances, etc.)

Mappings:

Sense Number 3: being earlier in time, occurring before something else

Commentary: PRIORITY[+quality][+temporal][+precedence]

Examples:
John was credited with the idea because his paper had priority over the others. (was published earlier)
No one knows which society had priority in the invention of writing. (was historically the first)

Mappings:
WordNet 3.0 Sense Numbers: 2