caducity

noun

ca·​du·​ci·​ty kə-ˈdü-sə-tē 

-ˈdyü-

plural caducities

1

: the quality of being transitory or perishable

Awareness of death—a vivid realization of the caducity of life and its joys and miseries—provides the strongest motive for metaphysics.

—F. Gonzalez-Crussi

2

: the physical and mental decline associated with old age

especially : the deterioration of cognitive functioning associated with old age

Synonyms

• second childhood
• feebleness
• senility

Examples of caducity in a Sentence

forgetting the name of an old friend was another painful reminder of her progressive caducity

Word History

Etymology

probably borrowed from French caducité "dilapidation, senility," going back to Middle French, from caduc "on the verge of collapsing, dilapidated" (borrowed from Latin cadūcus "on the verge of collapsing, unsteady, transitory") + -ité -ity — more at caducous

First Known Use

1652, in the meaning defined at sense 2