EXUVIATE

shed, molt, exuviate, moult, slough

(verb) cast off hair, skin, horn, or feathers; “our dog sheds every Spring”

Source: WordNet® 3.1

Etymology

Verb

exuviate (third-person singular simple present exuviates, present participle exuviating, simple past and past participle exuviated)

(ambitransitive, rare) To shed or cast off a covering, especially a skin; to slough; to molt (moult).

Synonyms

• (to shed or cast off a covering): moult, molt, slough

Source: Wiktionary

Ex*u"vi*ate, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Exuviated, p. pr. & vb. n. Exuviating.] ( Etym: [From Exuviae.] (Zoöl.)

Definition: To shed an old covering or condition preliminary to taking on a new one; to molt. There is reason to suppose that very old crayfish do not exuviate every year. Huxley.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition