pay dirt

• Expression informelle désignant une découverte précieuse, un succès ou la trouvaille de quelque chose de rentable, issue à l'origine de l'exploitation minière où 'pay dirt' est un sol contenant des minéraux de valeur.

An informal expression referring to a valuable discovery, success, or finding something profitable, originally from mining where 'pay dirt' is soil containing valuable minerals.

1. Valuable discoveryC1informalamerican

   A source of great profit or success; a valuable find.

   Trouvaille précieuse

   • After months of research, the team finally hit pay dirt with a new formula.
   • The investor struck pay dirt when the startup went public.
   • He knew he had found pay dirt when he discovered the rare artifact.

2. Mining termC2formal

   Earth or ore that contains enough valuable minerals to be profitably mined.

   minerai rentable

   • The miners were excited to finally reach pay dirt after weeks of digging.
   • The company's survey indicated a large area of pay dirt.
   • Extracting pay dirt requires specialized equipment.