Rhizome thick, creeping. Culms up to 150 cm, trigonous, glabrous. Leaves basal and cauline, linear, 3-4 mm wide, flat or folded; persistent sheaths brown, fibriform. Involucral bracts leafy, longer than inflorescence branches, sheath to 4 cm. Panicle compound, up to 60 cm, 4-7-branched; inflorescence branches single, oblong-elliptic; peduncles of inflorescence branches long, smooth; inflorescence axes sharply trigonous, densely hairy. Spikes numerous, bisexual, androgynous, arising from cladoprophylls, patent or horizontally patent, ovate-elliptic, 4-8 × 3.5-5 mm; male part of spike shortly linear, slightly shorter than or as long as female part, fewer flowered; female part 3-6-flowered; male glumes brownish ferruginous, lanceolate, ca. 2.5 mm; female glumes brown with dark brown spots, ovate-triangular, 1.8-2.3 mm, membranous, with 1 midrib, apex acute with excurved mucro. Utricles ovate-oblong, trigonous, inflated, 2.5-3.5 mm, patent, membranous, with many raised veins, base attenuate, apex contracted abruptly into long beak, orifice deeply 2-toothed. Nutlets blackish brown at maturity, broadly elliptic, trigonous, 1.4-1.5 mm; style base not thickened; stigmas 3.