STAPLE


Meaning of STAPLE in English

I. ˈstā-pəl noun

Etymology: Middle English stapel post, staple, from Old English stapol post; akin to Middle Dutch stapel step, heap, emporium, Old English steppan to step

Date: 13th century

: a usually U-shaped fastener: as

a. : a metal loop both ends of which are driven into a surface to hold the hook, hasp, or bolt of a lock, secure a rope, or fix a wire in place

b. : a small wire both ends of which are driven through layers of thin and easily penetrable material (as paper) and usually clinched to hold the layers together

c. : a usually metal surgical fastener used to hold layers of tissue together (as in the closure of an incision)

II. transitive verb

( sta·pled ; sta·pling -p(ə-)liŋ)

Date: 14th century

: to provide with or secure by staples

III. noun

Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French estaple, from Middle Dutch stapel emporium

Date: 15th century

1. : a town used as a center for the sale or exportation of commodities in bulk

2. : a place of supply : source

3. : a chief commodity or production of a place

4.

a. : a commodity for which the demand is constant

b. : something having widespread and constant use or appeal

c. : the sustaining or principal element : substance

5. : raw material

6.

a. : textile fiber (as wool and rayon) of relatively short length that when spun and twisted forms a yarn rather than a filament

b. : the length of a piece of such textile fiber

IV. adjective

Date: 1615

1. : used, needed, or enjoyed constantly usually by many individuals

2. : produced regularly or in large quantities

staple crops such as wheat and rice

3. : principal , chief

Merriam-Webster's Collegiate English vocabulary.      Энциклопедический словарь английского языка Merriam Webster.