staple

Etymology 1

From Middle English staple, from Anglo-Norman estaple, Old French estaple (“market, (trading) post”), from Late Latin stapula, from Frankish *stapul, ultimately from Proto-Germanic *stapulaz (“post”), from Proto-Indo-European *stebʰ- (“post, stem”). Compare staff.

noun

1. (now historical) A town containing merchants who have exclusive right, under royal authority, to purchase or produce certain goods for export; also, the body of such merchants seen as a group.
   Calais was one of the ‘principal treasures’ of the crown, of both strategic and economic importance. It was home to the staple, the crown-controlled marketplace for England's lucrative textile trade, whose substantial customs and tax revenues flooded into Henry's coffers. 2011, Thomas Penn, Winter King, Penguin, published 2012, page 73
2. (by extension) Place of supply; source.
3. The principal commodity produced in a town or region.
   The old staple of coal is a declining traffic; and what remains tends to be hauled a shorter distance, as new power stations are sited closer to coalfields. 1961 October, “Editorial: The importance of the "Roadrailer"”, in Trains Illustrated, page 577
4. A basic or essential supply.
   Rice is a staple in the diet of many cultures.
5. A recurring topic or character.
   In most countries, rubbish makes headlines only when it is not collected, and stinking sacks lie heaped on the streets. In Britain bins are a front-page staple. 2010, The Economist, Jul-Aug 2010, p. 27
6. Short fiber, as of cotton, sheep’s wool, or the like, which can be spun into yarn or thread.
   Tow is flax with short staple.
7. Unmanufactured material; raw material.

verb

1. (transitive) To sort according to its staple.
   to staple cotton

adj

1. Relating to, or being market of staple for, commodities.
   a staple town
2. Established in commerce; occupying the markets; settled.
   a staple trade
3. Fit to be sold; marketable.
4. Regularly produced or manufactured in large quantities; belonging to wholesale traffic; principal; chief.
   wool, the great staple commodity of England 1818, Henry Hallam, View of the state of Europe during the Middle ages
   The pastoral industry, which had weathered the severe depression of the early forties by recourse to boiling down the sheep for their tallow, and was now firmly re-established as the staple industry of the colony, was threatened once more with eclipse. 1929, M. Barnard Eldershaw, A House Is Built, Chapter VIII, Section ii

Etymology 2

From Middle English stapel (“staple, pillar, post”), from Old English stapol (“post, pillar”), from Proto-West Germanic *stapul, from Proto-Germanic *stapulaz, from Proto-Indo-European *stebʰ- (“post, stem”). See also Old English steppan (“to step”) and Old French estaple (“post”). Consider also stapes (“stirrup”), from Latin. Doublet of staple (etymology 1).

noun

1. A wire fastener used to secure stacks of paper by penetrating all the sheets and curling around.
2. A wire fastener used to secure something else by penetrating and curling.
   Can you believe they use staples to hold cars together these days?
3. A U-shaped metal fastener, used to attach fence wire or other material to posts or structures.
   The rancher used staples to attach the barbed wire to the fence-posts.
4. One of a set of U-shaped metal rods hammered into a structure, such as a piling or wharf, which serve as a ladder.
   Fortunately, there were staples in the quay wall, and she was able to climb out of the water.
5. (mining) A shaft, smaller and shorter than the principal one, joining different levels.
6. A small pit.
7. A district granted to an abbey.
   [Henry II] also granted liberty of coyning to certain Cities and Abbies, allowing them one staple and two puncheons at a rate, with certain restrictions. 1605, William Camden, “Money”, in Remaines Concerning Britain
8. (obsolete) A post; prop; support

verb

1. (transitive) To secure with a staple.