styptic

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The Word of the Day for October 6 is: 

styptic   \STIP-tik\   adjective
     : tending to contract or bind : astringent; especially : tending to check 
bleeding

Example sentence:
     "Next time you need to treat a minor cut," the article advised, "try 
sprinkling it with a little powdered cinnamon -- the spice is a superb styptic 
agent."

Did you know?
     People long ago recognized the power of certain substances to bind or 
contract organic tissue -- a quality that has various uses and benefits. 
English speakers weren't original in this knowledge, and they copied speakers 
of Greek, Latin, and Anglo-French when they designated this quality as 
"styptic" in the Middle Ages. (The word in Greek, "styptikos," is from 
"styphein," which means "to contract.") One thing that a styptic substance can 
do is stop bleeding, and almost from the start the word "styptic" has referred 
to this quality especially. It has also been applied to things that make your 
mouth contract, or pucker, as well as to substances that might affect your 
digestive organs with a "binding" effect.