Styptic

//ˈstɪptɪk// adj, noun

adj, noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A substance used for styptic results.

    "The powdered gum with resin is used as a styptic; and the mucilage has been recommended as an application to burns."

  2. 2
    a drug that causes contraction of body tissues and canals wordnet
Adjective
  1. 1
    Bringing about contraction of tissues; harsh, raw, austere.

    "Boyles turns to look over his shoulder, squinting into the styptic sun, and then flags a hand over his head."

  2. 2
    That stops bleeding; especially, in a minor way, topically. broadly

    "The growth on top was a scrubby plant, unknown anywhere else on Malta, which was believed to have styptic qualities – it could staunch bleeding when packed on top of a wound […]."

Adjective
  1. 1
    tending to check bleeding by contracting the tissues or blood vessels wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
astringentalumastringentastringent drugclampcollapsible

Example

More examples

"An astringent, like an alum block or styptic pencil, helps close and heal small cuts after shaving."

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin stypticus, itself borrowed from Ancient Greek στυπτικός (stuptikós), from στύφω (stúphō, “to contract”).

Related phrases

styptic pencilstyptic tree

More for "styptic"

SynonymsSentencesPronunciationTranslate

Next best steps

Find stronger synonymsSee usage examplesCheck pronunciationBrowse writing guides

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.