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• nugget
  nugget

  noun

  a lump of something, as of precious metal.
• Nugget
  Nugget

  noun

  shoe polish

nugget

American  

[nuhg-it] / ˈnʌg ɪt /

noun

1. a lump of something, as of precious metal.

2. a lump of native gold.

3. anything of great value, significance, or the like.

   nuggets of wisdom.

4. a bite-size piece of chicken, fish, etc., usually batter-fried.

5. Welding. (in a spot-weld) the metal fused.

6. Australian.

   1. a powerful, heavy animal.

   2. a strong, thickset man.

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Nugget ¹ British  

/ ˈnʌɡɪt /

noun

1. shoe polish

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verb

1. informal (tr; sometimes not capital) to shine (shoes)

nugget ² British  

/ ˈnʌɡɪt /

noun

1. a small piece or lump, esp of gold in its natural state

2. something small but valuable or excellent

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Other Word Forms

• nuggety
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of nugget

1850–55; perhaps diminutive of obsolete nug small piece, variant of nog ²; see -et

Example Sentences

It’s notable that Vance saved this nugget about demons for Johnson, who works with TPUSA, which bills itself as a youth outreach organization.

From Salon • Apr. 1, 2026

Ford dreamed up the atomic-age Nucleon, powered by a tiny nugget of uranium and incidentally requiring tons of lead shielding to protect anyone who came within a football field of the thing.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 26, 2026

A video has gone viral of a four-year-old boy who was left in tears after his dad stole his last chicken nugget at a football match.

From BBC • Feb. 4, 2026

There is a nugget of truth in that; Warsh has wavered over the years.

From Barron's • Feb. 1, 2026

It would throw out the worthless stuff and deposit the gold nuggets in a pile, so whenever we needed groceries, we could go out back and grab ourselves a nugget.

From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls