... again exactly what to expect; to tell the truth, I didn't half hear about it the other day; I was woolgathering. It was something queer that happened when you were ... — Shapes that Haunt the Dusk • Various
... caught napping. disconcerted, distracted, put out &c. v. Adv. inattentively, inadvertently, absent-mindedly &c. adj[obs3].; per incuriam[Lat], sub silentio[Lat]. Int. stand at ease, stand easy! Phr. the attention wanders; one's wits gone a woolgathering, one's wits gone a bird's nesting; it never entered into one's head; the mind running on other things; one's thoughts being elsewhere; had it been a bear it ... — Roget's Thesaurus
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