Amphitheatre A place where Romans went to watch entertainments. It was usually roughly circular with the stage in the centre.

Aqueduct A system of pipes and channels that brought clean water into towns from natural springs and rivers.

Arena A place where Romans went to watch entertainments, particularly gladiator combat and animal hunts.

Atrium Central reception area in a domus with an open roof and an impluvium.

Augustus The adopted son of Julius Caesar and the first emperor of the Roman Empire, which he ruled from 27 BC to AD 13. His real name was Octavian, but he took the name Augustus when he came to power. Augustus brought peace, but chose his own successor, thereby turning Rome from a republic with an elected leader into an empire ruled by an emperor.

Barbarian A person who lived outside the Roman Empire.

Basilica A large public building where important local business was carried out—much like a modern town hall.

Bathhouse A public building where people could go to wash. Bathhouses were also a good place to meet friends and socialize. The baths were heated by a hypocaust, or underfloor heating system. Bathers passed through several different rooms. Women had use of the baths in the morning, and men in the afternoon. Only the wealthiest Romans had baths in their own houses.

Caesar, Julius Dictator of Rome from 49 to 44 BC. Caesar had been a brilliant general, conquering many lands for Rome. When he began to rule Rome as a dictator (someone who has absolute power), some senators wanted to regain power and, in 44 BC, a group of them stabbed Caesar to death.

Caldarium Hot room in a bathhouse.

Caligula Emperor of Rome from AD 37 to 41. He was cruel and vain and would often have people slaughtered for no good reason. He was very probably insane: he even tried to make his horse a consul.

Cavalry Soldiers that rode on horseback. They often came from wealthy families.

Centurion Commanding officer of a century in the Roman army.

Century An army unit of 80 men.

Chariot A cart with two wheels pulled by horses. The Romans used chariots for transport and racing.

Circus A long, narrow arena with curved ends, where chariot races were held. The Circus Maximus was a massive arena and racecourse in Rome. It was big enough to hold roughly one quarter of the city’s population.

Citizen A person born in Rome with parents who were themselves Roman citizens. Later, citizenship was granted to everyone in the empire except slaves.

Cohort A Roman infantry unit in the army. Usually it consisted of six centuries, or 480 men. See prima cohort.

Concrete A building material made of sand, aggregate (rocks, rubble or broken tiles) and mortar (lime, gypsum or volcanic ash). In late Roman times many buildings were made from concrete.

Consul The most powerful elected official in the Roman Republic. Two consuls were elected to serve for one year. They were expected to govern Rome in agreement with each other.

Contubernium An army unit of eight men.

Corvus Boarding platform on a quinquereme.

Cuirass Leather or metal body armour worn by Roman soldiers. It was made of several strips joined together to make it more flexible than a single piece.

Denarius A silver coin. In the 1st century AD a legionary was paid 225 denarii a year.

Domus A large townhouse owned by a rich Roman citizen.

Emperor The supreme ruler of the empire, the territories conquered by the Roman army.

Equites Roman citizens who were mainly bankers and merchants.

Forum An open space in the middle of a town where meetings, and sometimes markets, were held.

Frigidarium Cold room in a bathhouse.

Gladiator A slave, criminal or prisoner of war trained to fight other gladiators and animals in an arena for the entertainment of the people.

Governor The ruler of a Roman province. Sometimes a high-ranking soldier would become governor of a province.

Groma An instrument used to measure straight lines and right angles. It was made of a wooden pole topped with a flat cross from which small weights were hung. A surveyor would position the groma so that two of the strings were aligned. He would then direct an assistant to place poles in line with the strings, thus marking out a straight line.

Hypocaust A central-heating system using hot air from a furnace directed through channels under floors and within walls.

Impluvium Decorative rainwater pool at the centre of an atrium in a domus. It helped to cool the house in hot weather.

Insula An apartment block in a town.

Latin The official spoken and written language of the Roman Empire.

Legion The largest unit of the Roman army made up of between 5000 and 6000 men.

Mosaic A pattern or picture made from coloured pieces of stone, pottery or glass set into cement. Mosaics were often used to decorate floors.

Nero Emperor of Rome from AD 54 to 68. In AD 64 a fire destroyed part of Rome. It is said that Nero, who saw himself as a great musician, played the lyre as Rome burned.

Patrician A Roman citizen who was descended from a noble Roman family.

Peristyle A garden or courtyard in a domus surrounded by columns.

Phalerae Disc-shaped medals worn by centurions on leather straps on their chest.

Plebeian A Roman citizen who was not a patrician.

Prima cohort The largest cohort in a legion of the army, made up of five double-strength centuries, or 800 men.

Punic Wars The wars between Rome and Carthage. War broke out in 264 BC over control of Sicily. Carthage was defeated in 241 BC. In 218 BC Hannibal of Carthage invaded Italy but was defeated in 202 BC. Sixty years later, Carthage fell to Rome.

Quinquereme A warship powered by 300 oars arranged in three rows on each side of the ship. There were five oarsmen to each column of three oars.

Republic A state ruled by the people or their chosen representatives. Between 509 and 27 BC, Rome was ruled by the Senate.

Roman Empire The lands and people controlled by Rome for about 400 years from 27 BC.

Senate A group of important men who helped govern both the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire.

Slave A person who was owned by someone else and who was used as a worker or servant. Slaves had no rights and could be bought and sold. They could be granted their freedom by their master.

Spina The central barrier that ran down the middle of a circus.

SPQR Initials standing for Senatus Populusque Romanus: “The Senate and People of Rome”. These letters were found on Roman coins and many public buildings.

Standard A tall pole topped with the symbol of a legion or century in the army. It was carried into battle by a standard bearer.

Strigil A curved tool used for scraping oil and dirt from the skin.

Sudatorium A steam room in a Roman bathhouse. Its name comes from the Latin word sudor, meaning “sweat”. In this room, the bather scraped oil and dirt off their skin with a device called a strigil.

Taberna A shop in ancient Rome. Shops sold anything from hot takeaway food to pottery and clothing.

Tepidarium The warm room in a Roman bathhouse. Bathers would enter the tepidarium to cool down after the steam and heat of the sudatorium.

Testudo A military formation in which soldiers protected themselves with their shields.

Thermae The Latin name for a public bathhouse. The word thermae comes from the Greek word thermos, meaning “hot”.

Tiberius Emperor of Rome from AD 14 to 37. He strengthened the empire but became a tyrant feared by all.

Toga A long piece of woollen cloth that was worn over a basic tunic.

Triclinium A dining room, usually furnished with three sofas around a table.

Villa A large house in the countryside.

Consultant: Philip Parker