Chemical substances or agents that cause leaves to fall off plants or trees.
From de- + foliage + -ant (agent suffix). The term emerged in the mid-20th century, particularly during military development of herbicides. 'Ant' suffix comes from Latin '-ans' indicating an action-performing substance.
Defoliants like Agent Orange were marketed as 'herbicides' but became one of history's most infamous chemical weapons—the dioxin contamination caused birth defects in Vietnam for multiple generations after the war.
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