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Prince of Denmark were composed, and to be actually latent in all things: hence, pure essence or extract, essential part of a thing. (Murray.)

tickle o' the sere. Literally, the 'sere' is the catch of a gunlock that holds the hammer. Hence a trigger that goes off at a light touch. (Nicholson.)

innovation. This speech does not appear in the Quarto of 1603 but does in the Quarto of 1604. There are two conjectures as to the meaning: (1) On January 30, 1603–4, a license was granted to the children of the Revels to play at the Blackfriars Theatre and elsewhere; (2) or, it refers to the custom of introducing personal abuse into plays. Either might be described as an 'innovation.'

aery. This refers to the young choristers of the Chapel Royal [and of St. Paul's] who acted plays.

cry question. This is also interpreted as meaning 'exclaim against (lampoon) those who are at the top of their profession, (or, the best productions of the dramatic pen).'

Hercules and his load. The reference may be to the sign of the Globe Theatre which represented Hercules carrying the globe. The sign itself was an allusion to the story of Hercules relieving Atlas.

handsaw. The phrase is proverbial. It has been conjectured that handsaw is a corruption of 'her(o)nsew,' 'her(o)nshaw'—a heron or hern. It is probable, however, that Hamlet uses the corrupted form in its derived sense of being able to recognize two dissimilar objects.

Roscius. A famous Roman actor whose intellectual capacities lifted him above the stigma usually attached to his profession.

scene individable. Probably a play which follows the classical rules relating to the three