Final answer:
Roman civil basilicas served as multipurpose public spaces without a transept, while Christian basilicas added a transept to the structure, creating a cruciform shape that symbolized the Crucifixion.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement that best describes a difference between a Roman civil basilica and a basilica built for Christian worship is that Christian basilicas had a transept added between the nave and the apse, giving it a cruciform shape to memorialize the Crucifixion.
While both the Roman civil basilica and the Christian basilica had a central nave and at least one apse, the Roman civil basilica functioned as a multipurpose space and lacked the transept, which is characteristic of Christian basilicas. This transept ran perpendicular to the nave and was symbolic in nature.
The Roman civil basilicas served various civic and juridical purposes, often aligning with the sides of a forum square. In contrast, the Christian basilica, rising after the period of persecution, focused on the creation of large interior spaces to accommodate the congregation, emphasize the interior experience of worship, and signify the new authority of Christianity.
This architectural evolution reflected the shift in social and religious practices.