The term “astringent” is employed in literature in various ways, often highlighting its medicinal properties as well as its metaphorical or sensory qualities. In many texts, particularly in T. H. Pardo de Tavera’s works on medicinal plants, the adjective describes substances with a bitter, constricting taste used in treatments—whether in decoctions for diarrhœa, dysentery, or as an injection for conditions like leucorrhœa ([1], [2], [3], [4], [5]). The word consistently denotes the physical property of contracting tissues, essential in many traditional remedies, as seen when the green fruit is praised as a potent remedy in Hindoo therapeutics ([6]) or when the trunk bark, rich in tannins, is noted for its therapeutic astringency ([7], [8]). Beyond its strictly medicinal context, “astringent” also makes an appearance in literary dialogue, where it conveys a terse or incisive tone, as in Sinclair Lewis’s Babbitt where a character’s greeting is described as “astringent” ([9]), or in Molière’s work where it labels a dose of medicine ([10]). This versatility in both practical and metaphorical applications demonstrates the word’s richly layered use across genres.