Caducous

2 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Caducous \Ca*du"cous\, [L. caducus falling, inclined to fall,
     fr. cadere to fall. See {Cadence}.] (Bot. & Zool.)
     Dropping off or disappearing early, as the calyx of a poppy,
     or the gills of a tadpole.
     [1913 Webster]



From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  caducous
       adj : shed at an early stage of development; "most amphibians have
             caducous gills"; "the caducous calyx of a poppy" [syn:
             {shed}] [ant: {persistent}]