n.; pl. Basilicas sometimes Basilicæ [ L. basilica, Gr. basilikh` (sc. o'iki`a or stoa` fr. basiliko`s royal, fr. basiley`s king. ] 1. Originally, the palace 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. [ 1913 Webster ]

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. [ 1913 Webster ]

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. [ 1913 Webster ]

{ } a. [ See Basilica. ] 1. Royal; kingly; also, basilican. [ 1913 Webster ]

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. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Of, relating to, or resembling, a basilica; basilical. [ 1913 Webster ]

There can be no doubt that the first churches in Constantinople were in the basilican form. Milman. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Min. Chem.) A salt of metasilicic acid; -- so called because the ratio of the oxygen of the silica to the oxygen of the base is as two to one. The bisilicates include many of the most common and important minerals. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Boron + silicate. ] (Chem.) A double salt of boric and silicic acids, as in the natural minerals tourmaline, datolite, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Cf. F. fluosilicate. ] (Chem.) A double fluoride of silicon and some other (usually basic) element or radical, regarded as a salt of fluosilicic acid; -- called also silicofluoride. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Chem.) A salt of hydrofluosilic acid; a silicofluoride. See Silicofluoride. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. (Chem.) A salt of metasilicic acid. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Proto- + silicate. ] (Chem.) A silicate formed with the lowest proportion of silicic acid, or having but one atom of silicon in the molecule. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ NL., from L. silex, silics, a flint. ] (Chem.) Silicon dioxide, SiO&unr_;. It constitutes ordinary quartz (also opal and tridymite), and is artifically prepared as a very fine, white, tasteless, inodorous powder. [ 1913 Webster ]

n.[ Cf. F. silicate. ] (Chem.) A salt of silicic acid. [ 1913 Webster ]

☞ In mineralogical chemistry the silicates include; the unisilicates or orthosilicates, salts of orthosilicic acid; the bisilicates or metasilicates, salts of metasilicic acid; the polysilicates or acid silicates, salts of the polysilicic acids; the basic silicates or subsilicates, in which the equivalent of base is greater than would be required to neutralize the acid; and the hydrous silicates, including the zeolites and many hydrated decomposition products. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. (Chem.) Combined or impregnated with silicon or silica; as, silicated hydrogen; silicated rocks. [ 1913 Webster ]

Silicated soap, a hard soap containing silicate of soda. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Silicification. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. A basic silicate. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. [ Uni- + silicate. ] (Min.) A salt of orthosilicic acid, H4SiO4; -- so called because the ratio of the oxygen atoms united to the basic metals and silicon respectively is 1:1; for example, Mg2SiO4 or 2MgO.SiO2. [ 1913 Webster ]