nugget
Americannoun
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a lump of something, as of precious metal.
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a lump of native gold.
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anything of great value, significance, or the like.
nuggets of wisdom.
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a bite-size piece of chicken, fish, etc., usually batter-fried.
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Welding. (in a spot-weld) the metal fused.
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Australian.
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a powerful, heavy animal.
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a strong, thickset man.
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noun
verb
noun
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a small piece or lump, esp of gold in its natural state
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something small but valuable or excellent
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of nugget
1850–55; perhaps diminutive of obsolete nug small piece, variant of nog 2; see -et
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
They include a nugget from the California gold rush; an 1879 lightbulb by Thomas Edison; a mainframe component from ENIAC, the first general-purpose electronic computer that was built in 1946 and weighed 30 tons.
From Barron's • May 29, 2026
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
Just another nugget unearthed by Colvin and Sabbs.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 17, 2026
Since the match against Newcastle on 18 January, dad Tom said people had stopped him the street to call him a "chicken nugget thief".
From BBC • Feb. 4, 2026
Max had gone west to seek his fortune, and upon her blouse collar, Mrs. Brenner bore proof of his success—a tiny nugget of raw gold fashioned into a stickpin.
From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros
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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.