Meaning & use
straight-A student
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Meaning
nouncountable
a student who regularly earns the highest grade, A, in all or most subjects
Grammar: Countable: 'a straight-A student', 'straight-A students'. The hyphen joins 'straight' and 'A' before the noun.
Patterns
- a straight-A student
- be a straight-A student in something
She was a straight-A student in high school and won a scholarship to a top university.
He isn't a straight-A student, but he works harder than anyone in the class.
My parents expected me to be a straight-A student, so a B felt like a failure.
Word forms
| plural | straight-A students |
|---|
Common combinations
- a straight-A student in math
- She was a straight-A student in math but struggled with history.
- a former straight-A student
- As a former straight-A student, he found the easy course boring.
- straight-A grades
- He finished the year with straight-A grades.
- not exactly a straight-A student
- I was not exactly a straight-A student, but I passed everything.
Synonyms and how they differ
- top student
- More general; it means one of the best students but does not specify the exact grade A.
- high achiever
- Used in school and work contexts; it stresses effort and results, not a particular letter grade.
Opposites
Word family
- straight As noun
- The grades themselves: 'She got straight As last term.'
Commonly confused: straight-A student or straight A's?
straight-A student vs straight A's
This spelling with an apostrophe is common but less standard; the usual form is 'straight As' or 'straight-A student'.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'straight-A student' correctly?
Choose one answer.
A straight-A student earns A grades consistently. The other options describe the opposite (C grades, failing, never studying).
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “straight-A student”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.