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This discovery was to have a major effect on the treatment of heart disease.

Does was to have mean supposed or destined in this sentence?

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  • In practice, the "purpose" sense (supposed, intended) would be very unlikely with your exact text (apart from anything else, "discoveries" aren't usually "planned", so they're not usually made with a goal in mind). But you'd have to provide more context to get a definitive answer.
    – FumbleFingers
    Commented Oct 29, 2019 at 13:15

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No, was to have doesn't mean 'supposed' or 'destined' in this case, it is merely the standard way of talking about an event in the past without using past tense for the whole sentence.

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  • 3
    Specifically, the future of an event in the past!
    – whiskeychief
    Commented Oct 29, 2019 at 17:34

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