The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Staple \Sta"ple\ (st[=a]"p'l), n. [AS. stapul, stapol, stapel, a
   step, a prop, post, table, fr. stapan to step, go, raise;
   akin to D. stapel a pile, stocks, emporium, G. stapela heap,
   mart, stake, staffel step of a ladder, Sw. stapel, Dan.
   stabel, and E. step; cf. OF. estaple a mart, F. ['e]tape. See
   Step.]
   1. 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.
      [1913 Webster]

            The customs of Alexandria were very great, it having
            been the staple of the Indian trade.  --Arbuthnot.
      [1913 Webster]

            For the increase of trade and the encouragement of
            the worthy burgesses of Woodstock, her majesty was
            minded to erect the town into a staple for wool.
                                                  --Sir W.
                                                  Scott.
      [1913 Webster]

   Note: In England, formerly, the king's staple was established
         in certain ports or towns, and certain goods could not
         be exported without being first brought to these places
         to be rated and charged with the duty payable to the
         king or the public. The principal commodities on which
         customs were levied were wool, skins, and leather; and
         these were originally the staple commodities.
         [1913 Webster]

   2. Hence: Place of supply; source; fountain head.
      [1913 Webster]

            Whitehall naturally became the chief staple of news.
            Whenever there was a rumor that any thing important
            had happened or was about to happen, people hastened
            thither to obtain intelligence from the fountain
            head.                                 --Macaulay.
      [1913 Webster]

   3. 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.
      [1913 Webster]

            We should now say, Cotton is the great staple, that
            is, the established merchandise, of Manchester.
                                                  --Trench.
      [1913 Webster]

   4. The principal constituent in anything; chief item.
      [1913 Webster]

   5. Unmanufactured material; raw material.
      [1913 Webster]

   6. The fiber of wool, cotton, flax, or the like; as, a coarse
      staple; a fine staple; a long or short staple.
      [1913 Webster]

   7. A loop of metal such as 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.
      [1913 Webster]

   8. Specifically: A small loop of metal such as steel, bent
      into a U-shape with the points sharpened, used to fasten
      sheets of paper together by driving the staple[8] through
      the stacked sheets and into a formed receptacle which
      curls the ends in and backward, thus holding the papers
      firmly together; also, a similar, slightly larger such
      fastener which may be driven into wood to fasten objects
      to a wooden backing.
      [1913 Webster]

   9. (Mining)
      (a) A shaft, smaller and shorter than the principal one,
          joining different levels.
      (b) A small pit.
          [1913 Webster]

   10. A district granted to an abbey. [Obs.] --Camden.
       [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Staple \Sta"ple\, a.
   1. Pertaining to, or being a market or staple for,
      commodities; as, a staple town. [R.]
      [1913 Webster]

   2. Established in commerce; occupying the markets; settled;
      as, a staple trade. --Dryden.
      [1913 Webster]

   3. Fit to be sold; marketable. [R.] --Swift.
      [1913 Webster]

   4. Regularly produced or manufactured in large quantities;
      belonging to wholesale traffic; principal; chief.
      [1913 Webster]

            Wool, the great staple commodity of England.
                                                  --Hallam.
      [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

staple \sta"ple\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. stapled (-p'ld); p. pr.
   & vb. n. stapling.]
   1. To sort according to its staple; as, to staple cotton.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. To fasten together with a staple[9] or staples; as, to
      staple a check to a letter.
      [PJC]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

staple
    adj 1: necessary or important, especially regarding food or
           commodities; "wheat is a staple crop"
    n 1: (usually plural) a necessary commodity for which demand is
         constant [syn: basic, staple]
    2: a natural fiber (raw cotton, wool, hemp, flax) that can be
       twisted to form yarn; "staple fibers vary widely in length"
       [syn: staple, staple fiber, staple fibre]
    3: material suitable for manufacture or use or finishing [syn:
       raw material, staple]
    4: a short U-shaped wire nail for securing cables
    5: paper fastener consisting of a short length of U-shaped wire
       that can fasten papers together
    v 1: secure or fasten with a staple or staples; "staple the
         papers together" [ant: unstaple]

The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (19 January 2023):

STAPLE

    A programming language written at Manchester
   (University?) and used at ICL in the early 1970s for writing
   the test suites.  STAPLE was based on Algol 68 and had a
   very advanced optimising compiler.

   (2003-02-28)


The Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (19 January 2023):

Staple

    St Andrews Applicative Persistent Language.
   Language combining functional programming with persistent
   storage, developed at St. Andrews University in Scotland.
   Tony Davie, .

   (2007-03-22)