Basilica - Definitions from Dictionary.com

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Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

ba·sil·i·ca

Audio Help [buh-sil-i-kuh, -zil-] Pronunciation Key

–noun

an early Christian or medieval church of the type built esp. in Italy, characterized by a plan including a nave, two or four side aisles, a semicircular apse, a narthex, and often other features, as a short transept, a number of small semicircular apses terminating the aisles, or an atrium. The interior is characterized by strong horizontality, with little or no attempt at rhythmic accents. All spaces are usually covered with timber roofs or ceilings except for the apse or apses, which are vaulted.

2.	one of the seven main churches of Rome or another Roman Catholic church accorded the same religious privileges.

3.	(in ancient Rome) a large oblong building used as a hall of justice and public meeting place.

[Origin: 1535–45; < L < Gk basilik hall, short for basilik oikía royal house. See basilic

]

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
Basilica

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

ba·sil·i·ca Audio Help (bə-sĭl'ĭ-kə) Pronunciation Key

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n.

1. A public building of ancient Rome having a central nave with an apse at one or both ends and two side aisles formed by rows of columns, which was used as a courtroom or assembly hall.
2. A Christian church building of a similar design, having a nave with a semicircular apse, two or four side aisles, a narthex, and a clerestory.
Roman Catholic Church A church that has been accorded certain privileges by the pope.

[Latin, from Greek basilikē, from feminine of basilikos, royal, from basileus, king.]

ba·sil'i·can (-kən) adj.

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
basilica

1541, from L. basilica "building of a court of justice," and, by extension, church built on the plan of one, from Gk. (stoa) basilike "royal (portal)," the portico of the archon basileus, the official who dispensed justice in Athens, from basileus "king" (see basil). In Rome, applied specifically to the seven principal churches founded by Constantine.

WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

basilica
noun
1.	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.	a Roman building used for public administration

American Heritage New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition - Cite This Source - Share This
basilica [(buh-sil-uh-kuh)]

A large Roman Catholic or Eastern Orthodox church building. A basilica is built with several parallel aisles separated by rows of columns, ending in a semicircular structure, the apse. Saint Peter's Basilica is the church of the Vatican in Rome.

[Chapter:] Fine Arts

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Basilica

Ba*sil"ic\, Basilical \Ba*sil"ic*al\, a. [See Basilica.]

1. Royal; kingly; also, basilican.

2. (Anat.) Pertaining to certain parts, anciently supposed to have a specially important function in the animal economy, as the middle vein of the right arm.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Basilica

Ba*sil"i*ca\, n.; pl. Basilicas; sometimes Basilic[ae] (-s[=e]). [L. basilica, Gr. ? ( sc. ?, or ?) fr. ? royal, fr. ? king.] 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.

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