How to Use basilica in a Sentence

basilica

noun
  • The earth beneath my feet shook as the bells of the ancient basilica tolled.
    — Christopher Hale, Time, 9 May 2025
  • The basilica is believed to have sat more than two stories tall.
    — Greta Cross, USA TODAY, 19 Feb. 2025
  • Gaudí's basilica could be described like a sand castle on a beach.
    — Seth Doane, CBS News, 7 June 2026
  • Huge crowds filed past his final resting place in the basilica.
    — Christopher Lamb, CNN Money, 28 Apr. 2025
  • The light, filtered through stained glass, shifts the mood from one side of the basilica to the other.
    — David Nikel, Forbes.com, 27 May 2026
  • This year, those pilgrimages have also been banned and the basilica will be closed.
    — Laura Rodríguez Presa, chicagotribune.com, 8 Dec. 2020
  • She was not involved in the basilica's restoration.
    — Camilla Alcini, ABC News, 7 Feb. 2026
  • This was a trademark form of Gaudí’s, but no such columns had yet been added to the basilica.
    — D. T. Max, New Yorker, 15 Sep. 2025
  • At the time of Gaudí’s death, the basilica was only a quarter of the way finished.
    — Liz Stinson, Curbed, 11 June 2019
  • Its terrace looks out over the Grand Canal onto a domed basilica.
    — Ellen Cushing, The Atlantic, 30 June 2025
  • How can a basilica stay dry amid rising water in Venice, Italy?
    — Los Angeles Times, 29 Apr. 2021
  • The climb up the scenic tower of the Catholic basilica can be challenging, but the view is worth it!
    — Amber Storm, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 9 Oct. 2017
  • The public has had the chance to pay their respects to the Pope after his body was moved to the basilica to lie in state.
    — Callum Sutherland, Time, 24 Apr. 2025
  • As the shoreline has since receded, the full footprint of the basilica — its apse and dozens of graves — now sits on dry land.
    — Ruth Sherlock, NPR, 28 Nov. 2025
  • So, beyond the basilica itself, was there anything else worth noting?
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 June 2026
  • Steep hills flank two sides of the city, and the basilica of Notre-Dame to the west overlooks the Saône.
    — Bill Blanning, latimes.com, 8 Oct. 2017
  • The riverfront homes are very European in design as is the basilica.
    — Rose Marie Walano, House Beautiful, 4 Aug. 2023
  • The bones were then arranged on a table in the crypt before being transferred to the lower church of the basilica.
    — Lianne Kolirin, CNN Money, 23 Feb. 2026
  • The falcons have been breeding successfully at the basilica for over two decades.
    — ABC News, 9 June 2026
  • The Easter celebration will be the first of any kind in the basilica in nearly a month.
    — Mike De Sisti, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 1 Apr. 2020
  • The coffin will return to the public’s view Thursday when it is carried out of the basilica.
    — Mark Heim | [email protected], al, 4 Jan. 2023
  • At the end of the 90-minute service, an aide wheeled Francis down the basilica’s center aisle.
    — San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Jan. 2024
  • When Gaudí died, in 1926, only about ten to fifteen per cent of the basilica had been built.
    — D. T. Max, New Yorker, 15 Sep. 2025
  • Below that site, in the basilica’s courtyard, groups of dancers from across the country perform before and during the feast.
    — Nina Strochlic, National Geographic, 24 Dec. 2019
  • The basilica is set to host Benedict's coffin for three days of viewing that start Monday.
    — Frances D'emilio, USA TODAY, 12 Jan. 2023
  • The basilica is home to many artifacts of the Catholic Church, including the tombs of dozens of popes.
    — Olatunji Osho-Williams, Smithsonian Magazine, 19 Nov. 2024
  • The cathedral was built on the site of two preexisting basilicas and its completion took more than five centuries.
    — ABC News, 15 Feb. 2026
  • Choristers from the oldest choir in Europe sang as the basilica was bathed in color by a light show and fireworks.
    — Christopher Lamb, CNN Money, 13 June 2026
  • The basilica's twin neogothic towers, standing 70 yards high, are a landmark feature in the heart of the city.
    — Arkansas Online, 29 Oct. 2020
  • Speaking from the loggia, the pope announced a prayer vigil for peace April 11 in the basilica.
    — Colleen Barry, Los Angeles Times, 5 Apr. 2026

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'basilica.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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