Studybug does not seem to mean someone who gets the highest (or even high) grades.
Straight A student could work. In the A/B/C/D/F grading system, the highest possible grade is an A. So achieving an A would be achieving the highest grade.
However, if someone got an A, that does not mean that the person earned the highest scores on exams and assignments (in the class; among the other students, etc). For that, you could frame it in terms of class rank and say
at the top of one's/the class
: having among the highest grades in one's class
<He graduated at the top of his/the class.>
So if you have a friend and he in fact scored the highest marks, then you could say he was at the top of his class, or simply he was top of his class.
In terms of percentile, could say he scored in the 90th percentile, or simply he scored in the top 10 percent.
If you use of his class, this can be interpreted as his graduating class. So if it's not clear from context, then you might need to be specific and say he scored in the top 10 percent of his Algebra class, for example.
You can swap 90 for other numbers like 95, 99, and swap 10 with 5, 1, etc.
I might have taken the description given by OP a little too literally. In any case, if you are looking for words to describe someone who, broadly speaking, studies often and regularly gets good/high marks, then there are several options, but none seem to be exact translations. In this case, studybug and straight A student seem to work.
You could also try:
nerd
an unstylish, unattractive, or socially inept person; especially : one slavishly devoted to intellectual or academic pursuits <computer nerds>
This does not necessarily mean the person gets high (the highest) marks. Since nerd could be considered "bad", you can use nerdy to soften it. She's so nerdy. She loves reading his math books. (It's kinda cute, in my opinion.)
bookworm
: a person unusually devoted to reading and study
This does not necessarily mean the person gets high marks, but it does mean the person studies a lot.
overachiever
a person who does more than they are expected to do or who is more successful than others:
In an academic setting, such a person regularly goes above and beyond what is expected and gets high marks because of it.
Here are two references:
- English equivalent of two popular Chinese slangs...
- Is being a xueba (学霸) a good or a bad thing?
I do not agree that only the present perfect tense can be used with "in the last five weeks" or "over the last five weeks."
The question to ask in deciding whether to use the present perfect (example: "I have searched") versus the simple past ("I searched") is:
When did the activity occur in relation to the present moment?
If the activity is completely over (in other words: if the activity occurred in the past and the activity has completely finished), then use the simple past.
If the activity started in the past but is ongoing (in other words: if the activity occurred or was occurring in the past but has not necessarily completely finished--and it might still be occurring even right now), then use the present perfect.
The scenarios implied in the three sentences of the original question leave a bit of ambiguity (meaning that different interpretations are possible) as to whether the activity should be considered completely-finished-in-the-past versus occurring-in-the-past-but-continuing-until-(almost)-the-present-moment. For that reason, either the simple past or the present perfect could be used, depending on the speaker's/writer's perspective. If he or she wants to convey the idea that the activity is completely finished, then he would use the simple past; but if he wants to convey a sense that the activity has continued right to the present, then he would use the present perfect.
(Note that there are other possible verb tenses, but for the sake of simplicity, we are discussing only the simple past and the present perfect here.)
This general guideline applies regardless of whether the preposition being used is "in," "over," or "during."
The ambiguity I mentioned comes from the fact that the activity began in the recent past (just five weeks ago) and was continuing until only yesterday. On the one hand, since a decision was made yesterday to buy a computer (and, presumably, to stop looking at that point), it could be said that the activity completely concluded in the past, so the simple past is appropriate. On the other hand, the activity continued right until almost the present moment, so the present perfect could also be used, depending on the speaker's/writer's perspective.
By contrast, in the following situations, there is no ambiguity as to when the activity ended in relation to the present, so the tense that should be used is more obvious:
In the last five weeks of his life, Winston Churchill wrote only one more letter.
Over the last five weeks before I was born, my mother searched for a crib for me to be able to sleep in.
During the last five weeks of 1929, many banks failed.
In each of the three sentences above, the activities being discussed occurred well in the past and had completely concluded by the time the sentences were being spoken/written. (use the simple past)
In the last five minutes, I have been looking for my eyeglasses.
Over the last five minutes, I have been answering a question on the stackexchange website.
During the last five minutes, the wind has been howling.
In each of these three sentences above, the activities had started in the past but were still ongoing until the moment they were written; they continued until the present, from the writer's perspective. (use present perfect--does not matter if it is with "in," "over," or "during")
In the last five weeks, I looked for the best deal on computers, but I stopped looking when I found one I liked yesterday.
In the last five weeks, I have been looking for the best deal on computers. Yesterday, I bought one at a very low price, but I am still looking for a second one to give to my daughter.
Best Answer
As a native speaker, my answer would be
Past perfect continuous tense means the action began at a time in the past and continued at the point in time being described or was somehow incomplete then. In the context of your question, I (the student) am late for class now because I watched the cricket match that took place close to or perhaps overlapping class time. This implies of course that the student stopped watching but presumably not soon enough to make it to class on time.
Of the answer choices given, the most appropriate would be
Have been … indicates that the speaker was elsewhere but since returned, as opposed to have gone … to mean the person is presently in a different place. This is the present perfect continuous or present perfect progressive tense.
With respect to the other possibilities in your question:
I have watched the cricket match.
This is the present perfect tense, which indicates something started in the past and continues in the present. The students are no longer watching the match, so present perfect may confuse the listener.
I have been watching the cricket match.
Explained above
I watched the cricket match.
Simple past tense is a bit robotic in this context. It is a true statement and accurate but only vaguely suggests a connection to being late. One might argue for a difference in precision over whether the student watched the cricket match to completion, in which case simple past would be more appropriate, or whether the match was still ongoing when the student left, in which case past continuous would be slightly better.
I have just watched the cricket match.
Present perfect again. Using just implies that it took place in the recent past, but the whole construction is wordy and awkward. Good English style is careful about use of just, only, and very. Also, statements perceived as being overly wordy may cause the listener to be suspicious.
I just watched the cricket match.
Just is mildly ambiguous here. Does the speaker mean just as in recently completed or just as in was watching the match and nothing more?