\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.

\Ba*sil"i*ca\, n.
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.