Sentence:  He had lived for almost thirty years in this same stone farmhouse with the same wife , a remarkably childish <WSD>thing</WSD> in itself ; he rose at half past six every morning , made himself some French coffee , had his corn flakes and more coffee , smoked four cigarettes while reading last Sunday 's Herald Tribune and yesterday 's Pittsburgh Gazette , then put on his high-topped farmer 's shoes and walked under a vine bower to his workshop . 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  a special situation