basilica Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun an early Christian church designed like a Roman basilica; or a Roman Catholic church or cathedral accorded certain privileges
    • the church was raised to the rank of basilica
  2. noun a Roman building used for public administration
    Roman basilica.

WordNet

Ba*sil"i*ca noun
Etymology
L. basilica, Gr. ( sc. , or ) fr. royal, fr. king.
Wordforms
plural Basilicas sometimes Basilice
Definitions
  1. Originally, the place of a king; but afterward, an apartment provided in the houses of persons of importance, where assemblies were held for dispensing justice; and hence, any large hall used for this purpose.
  2. (Arch.) (a) A building used by the Romans as a place of public meeting, with court rooms, etc., attached. (b) A church building of the earlier centuries of Christianity, the plan of which was taken from the basilica of the Romans. The name is still applied to some churches by way of honorary distinction.
Ba*sil"i*ca noun
Definitions
  1. A digest of the laws of Justinian, translated from the original Latin into Greek, by order of Basil I., in the ninth century. P. Cyc.

Webster 1913