Sentence:  In between teratologies , she <WSD>was</WSD> a pretty and shapely woman ; but the nicest thing about their relationship was her whisper to him , repeated some thousands of time , repeated with smiles and hope , `` People never live forever '' . 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  have the quality of being; (copula, used with an adjective or a predicate noun)