Music in Our Schools Month: "Man Listening to Disc" by Billy Collins

The speaker of this poem describes listening to various jazz musicians through headphones while on a walk. Read the text here.
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. amble
    walk leisurely
    This is not bad—
    ambling along 44th Street
  2. flutter
    flap the wings rapidly or fly with flapping movements
    the pavement sparkling with sunlight,
    pigeons fluttering off the curb,
    nodding over a profusion of bread crumbs.
  3. profusion
    the property of being extremely abundant
    the pavement sparkling with sunlight,
    pigeons fluttering off the curb,
    nodding over a profusion of bread crumbs.
  4. caliper
    an instrument for measuring the distance between two points
    his music flowing through the soft calipers
    of these earphones,
  5. suffuse
    cause to spread or flush or flood through, over, or across
    my delight at being suffused
    with phrases from his saxophone—
    some like honey, some like vinegar—
    is surpassed only by my gratitude
  6. surpass
    be or do something to a greater degree
    my delight at being suffused
    with phrases from his saxophone—
    some like honey, some like vinegar—
    is surpassed only by my gratitude
  7. gratitude
    a feeling of thankfulness and appreciation
    my delight at being suffused
    with phrases from his saxophone—
    some like honey, some like vinegar—
    is surpassed only by my gratitude
  8. unwieldy
    difficult to use or handle because of size or weight
    to Tommy Potter for taking the time
    to join us on this breezy afternoon
    with his most unwieldy bass
  9. esteemed
    having an illustrious reputation; respected
    and to the esteemed Arthur Taylor
    who is somehow managing to navigate
    this crowd with his cumbersome drums.
  10. navigate
    direct carefully and safely
    and to the esteemed Arthur Taylor
    who is somehow managing to navigate
    this crowd with his cumbersome drums.
  11. cumbersome
    difficult to handle or use, especially because of size or weight
    and to the esteemed Arthur Taylor
    who is somehow managing to navigate
    this crowd with his cumbersome drums.
  12. confidential
    indicating intimacy
    This music is loud yet so confidential.
  13. rapid
    characterized by speed
    I cannot help feeling even more
    like the center of the universe
    than usual as I walk along to a rapid
    little version of "The Way You Look Tonight,"
  14. pedestrian
    a person who travels by foot
    and all I can say to my fellow pedestrians,
    to the woman in the white sweater,
    the man in the tan raincoat and the heavy glasses,
    who mistake themselves for the center of the universe—
    all I can say is watch your step
  15. angle
    move or proceed indirectly
    because the five of us, instruments and all,
    are about to angle over
    to the south side of the street
  16. aggregation
    several things grouped together or considered as a whole
    And if any of you are curious
    about where this aggregation,
    this whole battery-powered crew,
    is headed,
  17. hub
    a focal point around which events revolve
    the hub of the cosmos
    with his hair blown sideways,
    will eventually make it all the way downtown.
  18. cosmos
    the universe considered as a whole
    the hub of the cosmos
    with his hair blown sideways,
    will eventually make it all the way downtown.
Created on Thu Apr 18 20:57:58 EDT 2013 (updated Fri Mar 30 13:54:39 EDT 2018)

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