Sentence:  All but the most rabid of Confederate flag wavers admit that the Old Southern tradition <WSD>is</WSD> defunct in actuality and sigh that its passing was accompanied by the disappearance of many genteel and aristocratic traditions of the reputedly languid ante-bellum way of life . 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  have the quality of being; (copula, used with an adjective or a predicate noun)