Learn English – What’s the English for “allappare”

expression-choicetranslation

This is essentially a translation question and as such off-topic, but please bear with me for a moment.

Allappare is an Italian verb that is used to refer to the astringent effect that you may experience when you eat unripe fruits, ( persimmons and bananas for instance) with the result that your mouth and tongue become dry and your ability to chew is temporarily limited.

The English equivalent expression , according to most reliable dictionaries, apprears to be set someone's teeth on edge, which, by any definition I could find online, doesn't actually correspond to the meaning cited above and is used mainly in a figurative sense:

  • If something, ​especially a ​noise, sets ​your ​teeth on ​edge, it ​annoys you very much:
    That DJ's ​voice really sets my ​teeth on ​edge.

Questions:

  • What the English expression that best fit the definition of "allappare" cited above?

  • What is the literal meaning of "set someone's teeth on edge"? How close is it to the description given above of "allappare"?

Best Answer

The sensation is said to cause the mouth to pucker. From Up North Again: More of Ontario's Wilderness, from Ladybugs to the Pleiades by D Bennet and T Tiner:

Chokecherries are not as dangerous as their name suggests, though they can taste harsh and astringent, causing the mouth to pucker and dry.

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