C. T. Onions, A Shakespeare Glossary

1. circle MND. II. i. 9 “her orbs upon the green” (=fairy rings).

2. (in old astronomy) each of the concentric spheres which carry the planets and stars with them in their revolutions Ado IV. i. 57 “as Dian” (=the moon) “in her orb,” Rom. II. ii. 110 “the moon . . . That monthly changes in her circled orb,” Ant. III. xi. [xiii.] 146 “my good stars . . . Have empty left their orbs.”

3. globe Compl. 289 “orb of one particular tear.”

4. heavenly body Mer.V. V. i. 60, Lr. I. i. 113, Cym. I. vi. 35 “The fiery orbs above.”

5. the earth, the world Tw.N. III. i. 44, Ham. II. ii. 515 [507] “the orb below,” Ant. V. ii. 85.

6. sphere of action 1H4 V. i. 17, Per. I. ii. 122 “in our orbs we'll live so round and safe.”