defoliation vs change of state

defoliation and change of state both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
defoliation	Yes	No	No	No
change of state	Yes	No	No	No

As nouns, change of state is a hypernym of defoliation; that is, change of state is a word with a broader meaning than defoliation:

defoliation: causing the leaves of trees and other plants to fall off (as by the use of chemicals)
change of state: the act of changing something into something different in essential characteristics

defoliation (noun)	change of state (noun)
causing the leaves of trees and other plants to fall off (as by the use of chemicals)	the act of changing something into something different in essential characteristics
the loss of foliage