lictor

American  

[lik-ter] / ˈlɪk tər /

noun

1. (in ancient Rome) one of a body of attendants on chief magistrates, who preceded them carrying the fasces and whose duties included executing the sentences of criminals.

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lictor British  

/ ˈlɪktə /

noun

1. one of a group of ancient Roman officials, usually bearing fasces, who attended magistrates, etc

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Other Word Forms

• lictorian
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of lictor

1580–90; < Latin; compare Middle English littoures

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

lictor

He might assume Lincoln had been a lictor, a Roman official who served as a sort of bodyguard to elected magistrates.

From Washington Post ● Oct. 1, 2022

And when the lictor, for reverence' sake, would have tied the cord loosely about the hands of Postumius, Postumius said, "Nay, but bind tight the cord that the matter may be done rightly."

From Stories From Livy by Bartolomeo Pinelli

The chairen is the policeman of China, the lictor of the magistrate, the satellite of the official; the soldier is the representative of military authority.

From An Australian in China Being the Narrative of a Quiet Journey Across China to Burma by George Ernest Morrison

She was made priestess of the deified Augustus; but Tiberius declared that public honors should be adjudged to women with extreme moderation, and he refused to allow a lictor to be appointed for her service.

From Roman Women by Alfred Brittain

Go, lictor," he said, "bind those hands which but a little while since, being armed, established sovereignty for the Roman people.

From Roman Women by Alfred Brittain