caducous

UK: /kəˈdjuːkəs/ US: (kə do̅o̅′kəs, -dyo̅o̅′-)

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

ca•du•cous  (kə do̅o̅′kəs, -dyo̅o̅′-), adj. 

1. Botany dropping off very early, as leaves.
2. Zoology subject to shedding.
3. transitory;
   perishable.

• Latin cadūcus unsteady, perishable, equivalent. to cad(ere) to fall + -ūcus adjective, adjectival suffix; see -ous
• 1675–85

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

caducous / kəˈdjuːkəs/ adjective

1. (of parts of a plant or animal) shed during the life of the organism

Etymology: 17th Century: from Latin cadūcus falling, from cadere to fall