a dream come true

[Lenka]

I don't understand this sentence:
"To become heptathlon champion at the Sydney Olympics was a dream come true."

I read the sentence in an article called "Britain's Top Medal Hopes" which was about Denise Lewis.

Could someone explain the sentence, please? I would understand it if it read "it was a dream THAT came true" os something similar... However, there is no "that" and that is why is seems quite confusing to me.

[MrPedantic]

Hello Lenka

1. To become heptathlon champion at the Sydney Olympics was a dream come true.

The entire underlined portion is the subject of "was"; "a dream come true" is the subject complement (i.e. it tells us more about the subject).

It is quite common to use a to-infinitive clause as the subject; cf. these examples (all from Google):

2. To teach is to learn twice.

3. To know her is to love her.

4. To weep is to risk appearing sentimental.

When you see a to-infinitive clause as the subject, it means the action expressed by the infinitive is the subject.

In your sentence, a gerund would also be fine (perhaps better):

5. Becoming heptathlon champion at the Sydney Olympics was a dream come true.

Does that make it any clearer? Let me know if not!

All the best,

MrP

[rajan]

Can you please tell me that in "a dream come true" - come true is a reduced from of a dream which come true.

Regards

Originally Posted by MrPedantic

Hello Lenka
1. To become heptathlon champion at the Sydney Olympics was a dream come true.
The entire underlined portion is the subject of "was"; "a dream come true" is the subject complement (i.e. it tells us more about the subject).
It is quite common to use a to-infinitive clause as the subject; cf. these examples (all from Google):
2. To teach is to learn twice.
3. To know her is to love her.
4. To weep is to risk appearing sentimental.
When you see a to-infinitive clause as the subject, it means the action expressed by the infinitive is the subject.
In your sentence, a gerund would also be fine (perhaps better):
5. Becoming heptathlon champion at the Sydney Olympics was a dream come true.
Does that make it any clearer? Let me know if not!
All the best,
MrP

[Fazzu]

Yes Rajan,'a dream come true' means a dream which has come true.

[Lenka]

Originally Posted by MrPedantic

Hello Lenka

1. To become heptathlon champion at the Sydney Olympics was a dream come true.

The entire underlined portion is the subject of "was"; "a dream come true" is the subject complement (i.e. it tells us more about the subject).

It is quite common to use a to-infinitive clause as the subject; cf. these examples (all from Google):

2. To teach is to learn twice.

3. To know her is to love her.

4. To weep is to risk appearing sentimental.

When you see a to-infinitive clause as the subject, it means the action expressed by the infinitive is the subject.

In your sentence, a gerund would also be fine (perhaps better):

5. Becoming heptathlon champion at the Sydney Olympics was a dream come true.

Does that make it any clearer? Let me know if not!

All the best,

MrP

Thank you very much for your answer, MrPedantic, however, my question is a bit different. Anyway, I am aware of the fact I asked the question in a bad way, so you couldn't understand what I really meant.
I don't understand why "To become... ...was a dream come true" there is no "that" or"which" or something like this between "dream" and "come". And why is "come" used in present simpl tense? I'd rather say: "To become...was a dream that came true."

[MrPedantic]

Ah! I see. Sorry, I did misunderstand.

I would agree that it's a past participle:

1. It is a dream (that has) come true.

Cf.

2. It was a prank gone wrong = it was a prank (that had) gone wrong.

It is an unusual usage, which is probably why it sounds odd to you!

All the best,

MrP

[Humble]

Hello, Lenka,
A dream come true is of the same participial pattern as the house built by Jack or the travellers gone astray.
I think the problem of come true lies in the difficulty of perceiving come as the Past Participle, smth passive.
Do you agree with me?

[Lenka]

Thank you all, I believe I can understand it well now...