defoliator
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de·fo·li·ate
(dē-fō′lē-āt′)v. de·fo·li·at·ed, de·fo·li·at·ing, de·fo·li·ates
v.tr.
1. To deprive (a plant or a vegetated area, for example) of leaves.
2. To cause the leaves of (a plant or plants) to fall off, especially by the use of chemicals.
v.intr.
To lose foliage.
[Late Latin dēfoliāre, dēfoliāt- : Latin dē-, de- + Latin folium, leaf; see bhel- in Indo-European roots.]
de·fo′li·ate (-ĭt) adj.
de·fo′li·a′tion n.
de·fo′li·a′tor n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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| Noun | 1. | defoliator - an insect that strips the leaves from plants insect - small air-breathing arthropod |
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