Sentence:  Alex suppressed those expressions of relief which offered to prevail in his face and escape from his throat ; unwarranted they <WSD>were</WSD> in any case for , as he stood facing the fille de chambre , his ears were assailed by new sounds from the interior of the shower room . 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  have the quality of being; (copula, used with an adjective or a predicate noun)