Ancient Rome Crossword

Print a criss-cross ancient Rome crossword on government, the army, building and daily life, with its answer key.

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Ancient Rome Crossword

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Answer key: Ancient Rome Crossword

1S2LEGIONN3AR4CHTO5AELQ6C7W8FORUMHOSE9EAGLESDRF10REPUBLIC11RUCOOMT12TOGAD

Across 2 LEGION · 3 ARCH · 8 FORUM · 9 EAGLE · 10 REPUBLIC · 12 TOGA

Down 1 SENATE · 4 COLOSSEUM · 5 AQUEDUCT · 6 CHARIOT · 7 WOLF · 11 ROAD

Next step Practice Roman numerals with flash cardsFind ancient Rome words in a word search

All 156 clues

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Republic and Empire 40

  • Aedile Holder of the office that kept up temples and streets and staged the yearly games
  • Antony Mark ___, rival of Octavian and partner of the queen of Egypt
  • Augustus First emperor, born Gaius Octavius, who ruled for some forty years
  • Aurelius Marcus ___, emperor who wrote the Meditations
  • Byzantium Greek town chosen as the site of the new eastern capital
  • Caesar Julius ___, whose family name later became a title for emperors
  • Caligula Emperor known by a childhood nickname from the army camps
  • Censor One of two officials who kept the roll of citizens and judged public conduct
  • Cicero Lawyer and the most famous public speaker of Rome
  • Constantine Emperor who founded a new capital on the Bosporus in 330 CE
  • Consul One of two heads of state elected for a single year
  • Dictator Emergency office that Cincinnatus gave up to go back to his farm
  • Diocletian Emperor who retired in 305 CE and grew cabbages at his palace
  • Fasces Bound rods and axe, an emblem later stamped on an American dime
  • Forum Public square where Romans traded, heard speeches and went to court
  • Hadrian Emperor whose stone barrier, begun in 122 CE, still crosses northern England
  • Lictor Rod-bearing escort; the highest officers each had a dozen
  • Magistrate General word for an elected Roman official
  • Nero Emperor at the time of the Great Fire of 64 CE
  • Palatine Hill whose name gave English the word palace
  • Patrician Noble by birth, from one of the oldest ruling families
  • Plebeian One of the ordinary citizens, who once walked out of the city in protest
  • Praetor Elected official whose post, by ancient account, took judicial work off the consuls
  • Province Unit of the empire, such as Britannia, Judaea or Africa
  • Quaestor Lowest rung of the career ladder: a keeper of the treasury
  • Remus Twin who, in the tale, disagreed with his brother over which hill to build on
  • Republic State run by elected officials; the Roman one lasted until 27 BCE
  • Romulus In the tale, the twin who ended up as the city's first king
  • Rubicon To cross it now means to pass a point of no return
  • Senate Council whose members served for life and guided the state
  • Seven Number of hills on which Rome was built
  • SPQR Four letters, seen on coins and drain covers, for the council and people of Rome
  • Tarquin Family name of the last king, driven out, by tradition, in 509 BCE
  • Tiber Third-longest river of Italy, on whose east bank the city grew
  • Trajan Emperor born at Italica, in what is now Spain
  • Tribune Official chosen by the common people, with the power to block a law
  • Triumvirate Alliance of three powerful men
  • Twelve ___ Tables: the first written laws of Rome, set up about 450 BCE
  • Veto A single officer of the people could stop a law by saying it
  • Wolf Animal that, in legend, nursed the twin founders

Legions and Wars 39

  • Actium Sea battle of 31 BCE that left Octavian master of the Roman world
  • Alps Mountains that an enemy general crossed to invade Italy in 218 BCE
  • Auxiliary Soldier who was not a citizen, serving beside the main units
  • Ballista Torsion engine: twisted cords drove its two arms
  • Barbarian Greek and Roman word for an outsider beyond the borders
  • Caliga Heavy-soled marching boot of open straps, with hobnails
  • Camp Walled base that marching soldiers built for the night
  • Carthage Rival trading city near modern Tunis, destroyed in 146 BCE
  • Cavalry Troops who rode to battle
  • Centurion Officer who carried a vine staff as his badge of rank
  • Century Unit of about eighty men, despite its name
  • Cohort One of the ten parts of the largest army unit
  • Corvus Boarding ramp with an iron hook like a beak, named for a raven
  • Eagle Bird on the standard that each of the army's main units carried
  • Elephant Huge animal used in war by Rome's enemies from North Africa
  • Frontier Edge of the empire, guarded by forts and walls
  • Galley Warship driven by oars
  • Gaul Land that, a famous opening line says, is divided into three parts
  • Gladius Weapon that the Romans copied from the Celtiberians of Spain
  • Hannibal Enemy general who held much of southern Italy for fifteen years
  • Helmet Metal head protection; the Roman name was galea
  • Huns Horse people from the east led by Attila
  • Laurel Leaves of the wreath worn by a victorious general
  • Legion Largest unit of the army, a body of roughly five thousand men
  • Mars God of war, for whom a month is named
  • Onager Catapult named for a wild donkey because of its kick
  • Pilum Heavy throwing spear with a long iron shank
  • Praetorian ___ Guard: the emperors' own bodyguard
  • Punic Word for the three wars fought against a North African rival
  • Pyrrhus Greek king whose costly wins over Rome gave us a phrase for a ruinous victory
  • Scipio General who defeated the invader at Zama in 202 BCE
  • Scutum Body shield of layered wood, covered with canvas and leather
  • Siege Surrounding of a town to force it to give up
  • Spartacus Thracian who led a great uprising of the enslaved from 73 BCE
  • Testudo Tortoise formation: shields locked overhead and on all sides
  • Teutoburg Forest where the general Varus was ambushed in 9 CE
  • Triumph Victory parade of a general through the city
  • Vandals People who sacked Rome in 455 CE; their name lives on in a word for wreckers
  • Visigoths Western Goths; they took Rome in 410 CE and later ruled Spain

Roads, Arches and Aqueducts 36

  • Appian ___ Way: route begun in 312 BCE from Rome toward the south
  • Aqueduct Roman water line; eleven of them supplied the city by the 200s CE
  • Arch Curved top of an opening, built of wedge-shaped stones
  • Atrium Central hall of a house, open to the sky, with a pool for rainwater
  • Basilica Long hall with side aisles, a plan that churches later borrowed
  • Baths Caracalla's great gift to the city, where a Roman went to get clean
  • Brick Baked clay block, often stamped with a mark that shows who made it
  • Bridge Some Roman ones, such as the Pons Fabricius in Rome, are still used today
  • Circus ___ Maximus: the great racing track of Rome
  • Colosseum Stone oval in Rome that could hold 50,000 people or more
  • Column Tall round pillar; a famous one in Rome is carved with a spiral picture story
  • Concrete Building mix; the Roman kind owes its long life in harbors to a reaction with seawater
  • Dome Round roof like half a ball; one in Rome has stood for about 1,900 years
  • Domus Latin word for a house; it gave English domestic
  • Fountain Public basin where city people fetched water
  • Fresco Wall decoration whose colors soak into damp lime before it dries
  • Groma Surveyor's tool: a cross on a pole with hanging weights, for laying out straight lines
  • Herculaneum Town said to have been founded by Hercules, lost under deep volcanic ash
  • Hypocaust Heating system that sent hot air under a raised floor
  • Insula Latin for island: a city block of rented flats, shops on the ground floor
  • Keystone Wedge at the very top that locks a curved opening
  • Lead Metal of many water pipes; its Latin name gave us the word plumbing
  • Marble Fine white stone quarried at Carrara since Roman times
  • Mile Roman distance of a thousand paces
  • Milestone Marker stone that told travelers the distance
  • Mosaic Tesserae pressed into mortar make one
  • Oculus Round opening, Latin for eye, in the top of a roof
  • Ostia Seaport of Rome, now ruins some way from the sea
  • Pantheon Temple to all the gods whose round roof is open to the sky at the top
  • Peristyle Row of pillars running all the way around a courtyard
  • Pompeii Buried town where visitors still walk Roman streets and read writing on the walls
  • Road Paved way; the saying has them all go to Rome
  • Sewer Drain; Rome's oldest great one began as an open ditch
  • Vault Arched ceiling over a hall or passage
  • Vesuvius Volcano on the Bay of Naples that erupted in 79 CE
  • Villa Large country house of a wealthy family

Daily Life in Rome 41

  • Abacus Hand calculator of the ancient world, with grooves for the counters
  • Aeneas Trojan hero of Rome's great epic poem
  • Amphora Narrow-necked clay jar with two handles, used for shipping oil and other goods
  • Arena English word that still carries the Latin for sand, harena
  • Augur Official who watched the sky for signs before any public act
  • August Month that Sextilis became, to honor Octavian
  • Bread Staple food; a poet said the people wanted only this and shows
  • Bulla Locket-like charm given to a baby boy nine days after birth
  • Calendar The Julian one added a day every fourth year
  • Chariot Racing car of the ancient world: the driver stood, reins wrapped round his waist
  • Couch Diners lay on one at a formal Roman meal
  • Denarius Coin whose initial became the d for a penny in old British money
  • Freedman Former slave who had been set free
  • Garum Fermented sauce shipped across the empire in labeled amphorae
  • Gladiator Trained fighter of the public shows; the name comes from the Latin for sword
  • Ides Day in the middle of a Roman month; March's fell on the 15th
  • January Month of the two-faced god who looks back and ahead
  • July Month in which the general who gave it his family name was born
  • Jupiter Sky god whose great temple stood on the Capitoline Hill
  • Kalends First day of a Roman month
  • Lamp Palm-sized pottery light with a wick
  • Lares Spirits whose little statues were set at the table for family meals
  • Livy Author of Ab Urbe Condita, a history in 142 books
  • Ludus Place where gladiators trained, or where young children learned their letters
  • Numeral Roman kind uses letters: I, V, X, L, C, D and M
  • Olive Fruit pressed for oil, used for cooking, lamps and washing
  • Paterfamilias Male head of a household
  • Patron Powerful man who protected his clients in return for support
  • Pliny ___ the Younger, whose letters describe the eruption of 79 CE
  • Sandal Open shoe held on by straps
  • Saturnalia December festival of gifts and feasting
  • Stola Long, pleated, sleeveless robe that marked a Roman wife
  • Strigil Curved metal scraper for cleaning oil and sweat off the skin
  • Stylus Pointed tool for writing on a coated board
  • Thermopolium Shop with big jars sunk into its counter
  • Toga Citizen's outer garment, a great half-circle of wool
  • Triclinium Room whose name comes from the Greek for three couches
  • Tunic Simple shirt-like garment, the everyday dress
  • Vesta Goddess whose round temple held a flame tended by six priestesses
  • Virgil Poet who wrote the national epic of Rome
  • Wax Coating of a wooden writing board, smoothed over to use again

How this list was compiled: Clues written for this site for grade 4 to 8 social studies, in four sets: republic and empire, legions and wars, roads and buildings, and daily life in Rome. Names, dates and meanings were checked against English Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org, CC BY-SA 4.0) in October 2026. No clue was copied from a published puzzle. Licence: own work

How it works

The first puzzle of this ancient Rome crossword asks for Senate, Forum, Legion and Toga among its 12 easy answers. It is a vocabulary crossword, sized for Letter or A4.

Read the full guide

Four sets, from the Senate to the street

Republic and Empire has Consul, Tribune, Fasces and SPQR. Legions and Wars has Cohort, Testudo, Pilum and Teutoburg. Roads, Arches and Aqueducts has Keystone, Hypocaust, Insula and Oculus. Daily Life in Rome has Stola, Garum, Triclinium and Kalends.

Legend, dates and Latin

Romulus, Remus and the she-wolf are clued as legend, and dates are written BCE and CE. Several clues show the Latin inside English: Domus gave us domestic, the Palatine gave us palace, and Arena comes from the word for sand.

  • Republic and Empire suits a civics week: Senate, Veto, Republic and Dictator are words pupils meet again in modern government.

Questions and answers

Is the ancient Rome crossword puzzle free to print?

Yes. There is no charge and no sign-up, and the answer key prints last on a sheet of its own.

What grade is the ancient Rome crossword for?

Easy Ancient Rome Words suits grades 4 and 5, with answers such as Toga, Wolf and Road. The four themed sets suit a middle school unit, grades 6 to 8. These bands are our judgment, not a published standard.

What does SPQR stand for?

Senatus Populusque Romanus, the Senate and People of Rome. The letters stood for the Roman state on inscriptions and on some of its coins. SPQR is an answer in Republic and Empire.

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