Question

What does William Wordsworth mean by "A poet" in the following bolded line?

Answer 1

A poet could not but be gay" ---> "the poet couldn't help but feel happy or overjoyed"

"gay" back then was used to mean "happy" and didn't really refer to homosexuality

Answer 2

Answer: A poet could not but be gay. It means that a poet could not avoid being gay.

Explanation: Gay means happy.