Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Word of the Day 3-13-12

Astringent:
1. Sharply incisive; pungent.
2. Medicine/Medical.  Contracting; constrictive; styptic.

3. Harshly biting; caustic: his astringent criticism.

4. Stern or severe; austerenoun:
1. Medicine/Medical.  A substance that contracts the tissues or canals of the body, thereby diminishing discharges, as of mucus or blood.
2. A cosmetic that cleans the skin and constricts the pores.
Origin:
Related to the words strain  and string , astringent  comes from the Latin root stringere  which meant "to draw tight."

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