as in balls
a more or less round body or mass
out of the countless celestial orbs twirling in space, the planet Earth remains the only one we can call home, so perhaps we should take care of it
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Recent Examples of orbs
The paved trail also includes an underpass that opens up to a cascade of glowing orbs, which will illuminate the path at night.
—
James Taylor, CBS News, 3 Feb. 2026
Even the baby's bedroom got a birthday makeover; a final slide included in a roundup of party photos shows silver balloons spelling out her name and more pink, orange and white orbs floating up to the ceiling.
—Zoey Lyttle, PEOPLE, 28 Nov. 2025
Instead of stacks of money or safety deposit boxes, there are cameras, lights and screens fastened together to create two giant orbs.
—ABC News, 3 Nov. 2025
These states’ extensive coastlines may explain part of the clustering, but the types of objects described—ranging from glowing orbs to submerged shapes that move at high speed—suggest something far more unusual.
—Amir Daftari, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 Oct. 2025
Sometimes performers and crew on tours will capture mysterious orbs and abnormalities in pictures.
—Maggie Menderski, Louisville Courier Journal, 8 Oct. 2025
Standout elements of her attire included her peekaboo bra layering element and a pair of statement metallic silver drop earrings with pierced orbs.
—Julia Teti, Footwear News, 18 Sep. 2025
Areas marked in red will not have orbs hidden, nor will orbs be placed in waterways or mowed areas, according to the release.
—Aurora Beacon-News, Chicago Tribune, 29 Aug. 2025
Wenyu turned and handed Lian Doraemon, his eyes two perfect black-and-white orbs peering out at her.
—Literary Hub, 1 July 2025
James Taylor, CBS News, 3 Feb. 2026
Even the baby's bedroom got a birthday makeover; a final slide included in a roundup of party photos shows silver balloons spelling out her name and more pink, orange and white orbs floating up to the ceiling.
—Zoey Lyttle, PEOPLE, 28 Nov. 2025
Instead of stacks of money or safety deposit boxes, there are cameras, lights and screens fastened together to create two giant orbs.
—ABC News, 3 Nov. 2025
These states’ extensive coastlines may explain part of the clustering, but the types of objects described—ranging from glowing orbs to submerged shapes that move at high speed—suggest something far more unusual.
—Amir Daftari, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 Oct. 2025
Sometimes performers and crew on tours will capture mysterious orbs and abnormalities in pictures.
—Maggie Menderski, Louisville Courier Journal, 8 Oct. 2025
Standout elements of her attire included her peekaboo bra layering element and a pair of statement metallic silver drop earrings with pierced orbs.
—Julia Teti, Footwear News, 18 Sep. 2025
Areas marked in red will not have orbs hidden, nor will orbs be placed in waterways or mowed areas, according to the release.
—Aurora Beacon-News, Chicago Tribune, 29 Aug. 2025
Wenyu turned and handed Lian Doraemon, his eyes two perfect black-and-white orbs peering out at her.
—Literary Hub, 1 July 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for orbs
Noun
-
Five of them will be white balls numbered 1 to 69.—
Fernando Cervantes Jr,
USA Today,
12 Feb. 2026
-
How to play the Powerball To play, select five numbers from 1 to 69 for the white balls, then select one number from 1 to 26 for the red Powerball.—
Lorenzino Estrada,
AZCentral.com,
12 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Dancers execute choreography with four to as many as 50 hoops, creating intricate designs such as animals and globes.—
Tiffany Acosta,
AZCentral.com,
29 Jan. 2026
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The sound globes rotated 340 degrees to project a cone of sound and could be tuned to re-create the environment in which the music was originally recorded—a concert hall, cathedral, nightclub, or opera house.—
Allison Marsh,
IEEE Spectrum,
24 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Finally, two Olympic torches were lit two Olympic cauldrons, in Milan and Cortina, their flames at the center of shape-shifting spheres.—
Robert Lloyd,
Los Angeles Times,
7 Feb. 2026
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Across six permanent galleries—which appear to float above the lobby in concrete spheres—are 1,500 artifacts spanning 300,000 years of human history.—
John Arlidge,
Travel + Leisure,
7 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Orbs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/orbs. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
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