English word origin

Etymology of nug

2 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗

In this entry · 2 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗

noun

A lump; a block.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From dialectal nug, nog, knog (“a knot, lump, block, a misshapen mass of anything, peg, linchpin”), also found in Scots nug, nugg, nogg (“small block of wood, peg, pin”), of uncertain origin. Probably from earlier *knug, *knugg, *knogg, related to dialectal Norwegian knugg (“knot, knob”), ultimately from Proto-Germanic *knuk- (“to ball up, mass together”), making it further related to English knock and knuckle.

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Cognate mentionnugsco
Cognate mentionknuggno · knot, knob
Derivation mention*knuk-gem-pro · to ball up, mass together
Cognate mentionknocken

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "sco",
        "2": "nug"
      },
      "expansion": "Scots nug"
    },
    {
      "name": "unc",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "nocap": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "uncertain"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "no",
        "2": "knugg",
        "t": "knot, knob"
      },
      "expansion": "Norwegian knugg (“knot, knob”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "gem-pro",
        "3": "*knuk-",
        "t": "to ball up, mass together"
      },
      "expansion": "Proto-Germanic *knuk- (“to ball up, mass together”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "cog",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "knock"
      },
      "expansion": "English knock"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "nug",
      "nug#English"
    ],
    [
      "nog",
      "nog#English"
    ],
    [
      "knog",
      "knog#English"
    ],
    [
      "nug",
      "nug#Scots"
    ],
    [
      "nugg",
      "nugg#Scots"
    ],
    [
      "nogg",
      "nogg#Scots"
    ],
    [
      "knugg",
      "knugg#Norwegian"
    ],
    [
      "*knuk-",
      "Reconstruction:Proto-Germanic/knuk-"
    ],
    [
      "knock",
      "knock#English"
    ],
    [
      "knuckle",
      "knuckle#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A lump; a block."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "West-Country"
      ],
      "recordId": "a31acb0fc464add24c0cbb932894c858615fd4da2e68ffa2e23881056d799f5d",
      "rawRecordSha256": "4f678aabab8477aa2a65cefebaeaa15905c0577b6b67003c8a6fe46b7f342f67",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 2762156
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗

noun

A piece of marijuana. · A chicken nugget.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Clipping of nugget, from the sense above.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [],
  "links": [
    [
      "nugget",
      "nugget#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A piece of marijuana.",
        "A chicken nugget."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "slang"
      ],
      "recordId": "520694bb80293daa459768eba2c98522c77210ddb00db8f3b71f2f641f37bc62",
      "rawRecordSha256": "8350133835939b7b55773b9397c0737109494bfd6d2d66b162cb93b87d6681a7",
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  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for nug →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger

Machine-source provenance

Source SHA-256: 5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run: 73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID: w-bnVn