staple

1. n. A settled mart; an emporium; a city or town to which merchants brought commodities for sale or exportation in bulk; a place for wholesale traffic. Source: opted

2. n. Hence: Place of supply; source; fountain head. Source: opted

3. n. The principal commodity of traffic in a market; a principal commodity or production of a country or district; as, wheat, maize, and cotton are great staples of the United States. Source: opted

4. n. The principal constituent in anything; chief item. Source: opted

5. n. Unmanufactured material; raw material. Source: opted

6. n. The fiber of wool, cotton, flax, or the like; as, a coarse staple; a fine staple; a long or short staple. Source: opted

7. n. A loop of iron, or a bar or wire, bent and formed with two points to be driven into wood, to hold a hook, pin, or the like. Source: opted

8. n. A shaft, smaller and shorter than the principal one, joining different levels. Source: opted

9. n. A small pit. Source: opted

10. n. A district granted to an abbey. Source: opted

11. a. Pertaining to, or being market of staple for, commodities; as, a staple town. Source: opted

12. a. Established in commerce; occupying the markets; settled; as, a staple trade. Source: opted

13. a. Fit to be sold; marketable. Source: opted

14. a. Regularly produced or manufactured in large quantities; belonging to wholesale traffic; principal; chief. Source: opted

15. v. t. To sort according to its staple; as, to staple cotton. Source: opted

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