The poem means that William Wordsworth loved skating and loved nature when he was young as he says, "We hissed along the polished ice in games Confederate, imitative of the chase And woodland pleasures, - the resounding horn," The meaning of the poem is expressed symbolically because most of what he says is a symbol to the real meaning of the poem for example when he says "Glanced sideways, leaving the tumultuous throng" this is a symbol for how he always feels the need to leave his companion.
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