From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishnuggetnug‧get /ˈnʌɡɪt/ noun [countable] 1 HEGa small rough piece of a valuable metal found in the earth a gold nugget2 DFa small round piece of food chicken nuggets3 → nugget of information/wisdom etc
Examples from the Corpus
nugget• The gold was found in both dust and nuggets.• In another case, a student was disciplined for aiming a chicken nugget as if it were a gun.• Instead she found a large metal key in the box of chicken nuggets and fries.• Glittering nuggets loose on the ground scattered everywhere.• Most especially, notice the little pieces of polenta floating in the dough, like little gold nuggets.• gold nuggets• Along the way, a couple of good gossip nuggets emerge.• Big shiny chunks, thin pale nuggets, dull velvety dust, huge rocks like slippery ice.• The larger the filing system, the less likely you are to find that nugget of hidden gold when you want it.gold nugget• Most especially, notice the little pieces of polenta floating in the dough, like little gold nuggets.Origin nugget (1800-1900) Perhaps from English dialect nug “block, lump” 