Hypertext Webster Gateway: "astringency"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Astringency \As*trin"gen*cy\ ([a^]s*tr[i^]n"jen*s[y^]), n.
The quality of being astringent; the power of contracting the
parts of the body; that quality in medicines or other
substances which causes contraction of the organic textures;
as, the astringency of tannin.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
astringency
n 1: a sharp astringent taste; the taste experience when a
substance causes the mouth to pucker [syn: {astringence}]
2: the ability to contract or draw together soft body tissues
to check blood flow or restrict secretion of fluids [syn:
{stypsis}]
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