Biodegradable means able to rot away naturally and harmlessly. Biodegradable packaging, fully biodegradable, biodegradable plastic.
The label says nothing about how long or under what conditions, which is the catch: many biodegradable plastics need an industrial composter at high heat and simply persist in a hedge. Compostable is the stricter term.
1adjectivebiodegradableAble to rot away naturally and harmlessly.
“The shop now uses biodegradable bags made from corn starch.”
biodegradable is a quality.
From bio- + degradable.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA