nugget

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nugget

/ˈnʌɡət/

Where it comes from

Uncertain, first attested in reference to animals & people in Scotland and in reference to ore chunks in Australia. Possibly from southern English nug (“lump, block”) or Scottish knudge/nudge (“short, sturdy person or animal”) + -et (“forming diminutives”) or from rebracketed alteration of an ingot as a ni(n)got.

noun nuggets

countable A small, compact chunk or clump. a gold nugget
countable A chicken nugget. By now, we hope you have said “no” to processed nuggets and fingers. Instead, how about taking some real chicken, tossing it with real eggs, a little tangy mustard, and a crunchy quinoa coating?
countable A tidbit of something valuable. a nugget of wisdom
countable A small piece of tasty food, a tidbit.
uncountable A type of boot polish.
countable A bud from the Cannabis sativa plant, especially one that is potent.
countable, slang An inexperienced, newly trained fighter pilot. Jack stifled a smirk at the ensign's expressionless non-reaction. He'd been a nugget himself once, the new guy fresh from training.
countable, uncountable A partial description gleaned from data mining. We have previously said that the heuristic algorithms produce good nuggets for most classes and most λ values […]
countable, offensive, slang A person with no arms or legs; a basket case.
Australia, countable, slang An item that is typically old and of dubious quality or poor condition.

verb nuggets · nuggeting · nuggetting · nuggeted · nuggetted

To find nuggets (of something valuable) The other day, you are told, a fellow nuggetted ten or twenty pounds weight, and, of course, you see no reason why half a hundred weight might not be lying snugly ensconced awaiting the revelations of your pick.
Australia, New Zealand, slang To smear a male's genitals or anus with boot polish or similar substance against his will. Among the complaints to Dart, “blackballing” or “nuggetting” was the most common form of sexual abuse carried out by recruits, and referred to a boy being forcibly held down “while boot polish, toothpaste or another substance was forcibly smeared on his genitals or anal area, sometimes with a hard b

Thesaurus

Closest in meaning: core, pebble, seam, stone, rock, vein, nucleus, information, niblet, nugg, pellet, nutlet, chunklet, nubble, nutling, nublet

Translations

Every language

noun small chunk or clump

Español	pepita
한국어	금덩이 geumdeong'i
日本語	ナゲット nagetto
中文	塊 /块 kuài
Português	pepita
Français	pépite
Deutsch	Klumpen
Italiano	pepita
Ελληνικά	βώλος χρυσού vólos chrysoú
Română	pepită
Русский	саморо́док samoródok, кусо́к kusók

noun tidbit of something valuable

Español	dato valioso

noun inexperienced fighter pilot

Français	bleu

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MLA

"nugget." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/nugget. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

nugget. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/nugget

Chicago

"nugget." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/nugget.

BibTeX

@misc{nugget_2026,
  title = {nugget},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/nugget},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}