Meaning of 'by way of'

Definition from thefreedictionary.com: for the purpose of; as being; in character of.

I seem to read uses of the phrase by way of that don't conform with the definition above, such as the examples below:

1. And, to tie in with its weather spot, each TVC ends with the Volkswagen logo dissolving by way of a wind, rain or a sunshine effect.

2. It is held that knowledge of the outer world is constituted by the relation to the object, while the fact that knowledge is different from what it knows is due to the fact that knowledge comes by way of contents.

3. The coral had partly served its purpose as a reconciling bond, when one afternoon Rebecca, who had stayed after school for her grammar lesson as usual, was returning home by way of the short cut.