What does "staple" mean?
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.
Staple
/ˈsteɪ.pəl/ adj, name, noun, verb
adj, name, noun, verb ·Common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: 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.
- Grammar: staple is listed as adj, name, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: anchored, article, article of commerce, article of merchandise.
- Useful contrasts: delicacies, detach, exceptional.
- Usage evidence: Rice is one of those staple commodities.
How to use "staple"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "staple" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "staple" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "staple" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "staple" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "staple" is acting as adj, name, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "anchored" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "staple", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 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. countable, historical, uncountable
"The customs of Alexandria were very great, it having been the staple of the Indian trade."
- 2 Any of several types of fastener comprising a bent piece of wire.; A wire fastener, made of thin wire, used to secure stacks of paper by penetrating all the sheets and curling around.
"They stapled the documents with an office stapler, putting a staple in the top left corner of each one."
- 3 (usually in the plural) a necessary commodity for which demand is constant wordnet
- 4 Place of supply; source. broadly, countable, uncountable
"Whitehall naturally became the chief staple of news. Whenever there was a rumour that anything important had happened or was about to happen, people hastened thither to obtain intelligence from the fountain head."
- 5 Any of several types of fastener comprising a bent piece of wire.; A wire fastener, in any of various sizes, used to secure something else by penetrating and curling.
"They stapled the housewrap with a staple gun firing large staples."
Show 16 more definitions
- 6 paper fastener consisting of a short length of U-shaped wire that can fasten papers together wordnet
- 7 The principal commodity produced in a town or region. countable, uncountable
"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."
- 8 Any of several types of fastener comprising a bent piece of wire.; A U-shaped wire fastener, made of thick wire, 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."
- 9 a short U-shaped wire nail wordnet
- 10 A basic or essential supply. countable, uncountable
"Rice is a staple in the diet of many cultures."
- 11 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."
- 12 material suitable for manufacture or use or finishing wordnet
- 13 A recurring topic or character. countable, uncountable
"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."
- 14 A shaft, smaller and shorter than the principal one, joining different levels.
- 15 a natural fiber (raw cotton, wool, hemp, flax) that can be twisted to form yarn wordnet
- 16 Short fiber, as of cotton, sheep’s wool, or the like, which can be spun into yarn or thread. countable, uncountable
"Tow is flax with short staple."
- 17 A small pit.
- 18 Unmanufactured material; raw material. countable, uncountable
- 19 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."
- 20 a type of two-pronged fastener, usually metal, used for joining, gathering, or binding materials together. countable, uncountable
- 21 A post; prop; support obsolete
Verb
- 1 To sort according to its staple. transitive
"to staple cotton"
- 2 To secure with a staple. transitive
- 3 secure or fasten with a staple or staples wordnet
Adjective
- 1 Relating to, or being market of staple for, commodities. not-comparable
"a staple town"
- 2 Established in commerce; occupying the markets; settled. not-comparable
"a staple trade"
- 3 Fit to be sold; marketable. not-comparable
"What needy writer would not solicit to work under such masters, who will pay us beforehand, take off as much of our ware as we please, at our own rates, and trouble not themselves to examine, either before or after they have bought it, whether it be staple, or not."
- 4 Regularly produced or manufactured in large quantities; belonging to wholesale traffic; principal; chief. not-comparable
"wool, the great staple commodity of England"
Adjective
- 1 necessary or important, especially regarding food or commodities wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A village and civil parish in Dover district, Kent, England (OS grid ref TR2756). countable, uncountable
- 2 A habitational surname from Middle English. countable, uncountable
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"Rice is one of those staple commodities."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "staple"?
Common synonyms include: anchored, article, article of commerce, article of merchandise, articulate, attach.
How do you use "staple" in a sentence?
Rice is one of those staple commodities.
How do you pronounce "staple"?
Pronounced /ˈsteɪ.pəl/.
Etymology
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. Doublet of étape and etymology 2.
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 étape and etymology 1.
Etymology 3
From Middle English stapel (“staple”).