Hypertext Webster Gateway: "basilicas"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
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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