nugget

[nuhg-it]

noun

a lump of something, as of precious metal.
a lump of native gold.
anything of great value, significance, or the like: nuggets of wisdom.

a bite-size piece of chicken, fish, etc., usually batter-fried.
Welding. (in a spot-weld) the metal fused.
Australian.
1. a powerful, heavy animal.
2. a strong, thickset man.

Origin of nugget

1850–55; perhaps diminutive of obsolete nug small piece, variant of nog²; see -et

Related formsnug·get·y, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for nuggets

clod, wad, ingot, gold, chunk, treasure, hunk, rock, mass, clump, plum, bullion

Examples from the Web for nuggets

Contemporary Examples of nuggets

Jason Collins and the Brooklyn Nets play in Portland on Wednesday and then fly to Denver to face the Nuggets on Thursday night.
Lobbyist Has An Indecent Proposal for Gays in the NFL
Ben Jacobs
February 25, 2014
Gordon and Trainor do pay their way with nuggets of discovery; but their most valuable contribution is perspective.
‘The Endgame’ Is A Well Researched, Highly Critical Look at U.S. Policy in Iraq
John Barry
September 25, 2012
We did run out of some things, like nuggets, strips, lemonade, and waffle fries.
A Gay Chick-fil-A Employee Speaks Out
Anonymous
August 2, 2012
Poker was played for fantastic pots; piles of nuggets and dust that could easily ransom a king.
Welcome Back to the Gold Rush
Howard Blum
April 28, 2011
The international discovery hunt has turned up other nuggets.
Madoff's Devilish Female Partner in Crime
Allan Dodds Frank
December 11, 2010

Historical Examples of nuggets

Of the gold they took mostly dust, because it packed closer than nuggets.
Murder Point
Coningsby Dawson
I could have won every peso if I had put up only a little handful of the nuggets.
The Treasure Trail
Marah Ellis Ryan
They carry good-sized pokes of nuggets and dust which they use in trading.
The Trail of a Sourdough
May Kellogg Sullivan
"But you cannot be always sure of your nuggets," muttered Tony.
Tony Butler
Charles James Lever
Blake put the nuggets into his pocket and threw the rest out into the pool.
Out of the Depths
Robert Ames Bennet

British Dictionary definitions for nuggets

nugget

noun

a small piece or lump, esp of gold in its natural state
something small but valuable or excellent

Word Origin for nugget

C19: origin unknown

Nugget

noun

trademark shoe polish

verb

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

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for nuggets

nugget

1852, "lump of gold," probably from southwestern England dialectal nug "lump," of unknown origin [OED]. Another theory is that it is from a misdivision of an ingot. Transferred sense is from 1859.