noun · 5 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
UK:/bəˈsɪlɪkə/
US:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
CMU ARPABET:B AH0 S IH1 L IH0 K AH0
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
CMU ARPABET 2:B AH0 Z IH1 L AH0 K AH0
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
A Christian church building having a nave with a semicircular apse, side aisles, a narthex and a clerestory.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Topics: architecture
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
A Roman Catholic church or cathedral with basilican status, an honorific status granted by the pope to recognize its historical, architectural, or sacramental importance.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
An apartment provided in the houses of persons of importance, where assemblies were held for dispensing justice; hence, any large hall used for this purpose.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: obsolete
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
4
noun
Meaning 4
a Roman building used for public administration
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: Roman basilica
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: Roman building
5
noun
Meaning 5
an early Christian church designed like a Roman basilica; or a Roman Catholic church or cathedral accorded certain privileges
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
the church was raised to the rank of basilica
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: church, church building
History
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin basilica, from Ancient Greek βᾰσῐλῐκή (băsĭlĭkḗ), from βᾰσῐλῐκὴ στοά (băsĭlĭkḕ stoá, “royal hall”), ultimately from βασιλικός (basilikós, “royal”), from βασιλεύς (basileús, “king, chief”). Doublet of basoche.
Across languages
Translations
40 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Bulgarian:
бази́лика
(bazílika)
— Christian church building having a nave
Catalan:
basílica
— Christian church building having a nave
Chinese Mandarin:
巴西利卡
(bāxīlìkǎ)
— Christian church building having a nave
Chinese Mandarin:
大聖堂 /大圣堂
(dàshèngtáng)
— Christian church building having a nave
Czech:
bazilika
— Christian church building having a nave
Danish:
basilika
— Christian church building having a nave
Dutch:
basiliek
— Christian church building having a nave
Esperanto:
baziliko
— Christian church building having a nave
Estonian:
basiilika
— Christian church building having a nave
Finnish:
basilika
— Christian church building having a nave
Finnish:
kirkko
— Christian church building having a nave
French:
basilique
— Christian church building having a nave
German:
Basilika
— Christian church building having a nave
Greek:
βασιλική
(vasilikí)
— Christian church building having a nave
Hungarian:
bazilika
— Christian church building having a nave
Ido:
baziliko
— Christian church building having a nave
Indonesian:
basilika
— Christian church building having a nave
Irish:
baisleac
— Christian church building having a nave
Italian:
basilica
— Christian church building having a nave
Japanese:
バシリカ
(bashirika)
— Christian church building having a nave
Japanese:
聖堂
(seidō)
— Christian church building having a nave
Latvian:
bazilika
— Christian church building having a nave
Lithuanian:
bazilika
— Christian church building having a nave
Macedonian:
базилика
(bazilika)
— Christian church building having a nave
Malay:
basilika
— Christian church building having a nave
Manx:
ard-cheeill
— Christian church building having a nave
Norwegian Bokmål:
basilika
— Christian church building having a nave
Polish:
bazylika
— Christian church building having a nave
Portuguese:
basílica
— Christian church building having a nave
Romanian:
bazilică
— Christian church building having a nave
Russian:
бази́лика
(bazílika)
— Christian church building having a nave
Serbo-Croatian:
базѝлика
— Christian church building having a nave
Serbo-Croatian:
bazìlika
— Christian church building having a nave
Slovak:
bazilika
— Christian church building having a nave
Slovene:
bazilika
— Christian church building having a nave
Spanish:
basílica
— Christian church building having a nave
Swedish:
basilika
— Christian church building having a nave
Tagalog:
basilika
— Christian church building having a nave
Thai:
มหาวิหาร
(má-hǎa-wí-hǎan)
— Christian church building having a nave
Turkish:
bazilika
— Christian church building having a nave
