Small to large tree, up to 36 m, 70 cm ø. Buttresses occasionally present, up to 1¼ m. Bark smooth to finely fissured, light-to dark-brown. Innovations sparsely appressed-puberulous, glabrescent. Older twigs glabrous, sparsely lenticellate. Stipules overlapping, embracing the twig and enclosing the bud, broad-ovate-acute, thick, c. 4-5 by 3-4 mm. Leaves elliptic to ovate-elliptic, (5-)8-11(-13) by (2½-)3-5(-6) cm, index (l½-)2 (-2½); coriaceous, glabrous, dull grey-green when dried; base attenuate-rounded, mostly symmetrical, margin entire, often undulate, apex bluntly acute to rounded-acute; midrib and nerves only slightly raised beneath, flattish to shallowly impressed above; main nerves 3-5 pairs, ascending and arcuating at an angle of over 50° with the midrib, anastomosing and looped along the margin, the lowest pair running up to ⅓-½ the length of the leaf; reticulations fine, irregular, obscure on both surfaces; petiole 6-15 by 1-1 ½ mm, flat to ± sulcate. Flowers 5-merous. Inflorescences ♂ or ♀ or rarely mixed, axillary or subterminal, much-branched, 5-60-flowered, including the bracts sparsely appressed-puberulous; bracts ovate-acute, c. 2 by 1 mm. ♂ Inflorescences up to 4 cm long, borne on the lower and leafless part or axillary on the lower leaf of the new shoot, paniculate, 30-60-flowered; ♂ flowers subsessile, c. 1-1½ mm ø; perianth lobes transparent, c. 1-1½ by ½ m m; filaments c. 1 mm, anthers subreniform, c. ¾-l by ½ mm; pistillode minute, compressed. — Mixed or ♀ inflorescences axillary on the upper parts of the new shoot, racemose, 5-10-flowered; ♀ flower ovoid-conical, c. 2 by 1 mm; perianth lobes ovate-acute, c. ½-1 by ½ mm, subglabrous; staminodes rudimentary, very much shorter than the perianth; ovary ± compressed, subglabrous, c. 1½-2 by 1 mm; stigmatic arms spreading, bifid at the tip. Fruit ovoid, faintly 4-5-angular, beaked, glabrous, 7-12 by 5-8 mm, bluish to glaucous when ripe, mostly sterile.
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Tree to 12 (–20) m high, dioecious. Leaves: lamina elliptic to ovate-elliptic or ovate to lanceolate, (4.5–) 5–15 cm long, 1.2–6 cm wide, rounded at base, sometimes oblique, entire, sometimes undulate margin, bluntly acute at apex, not markedly 3-veined, glabrous or sparsely puberulous; petiole (2.6–) 6–15 (–20) mm long; stipules broadly ovate, 4–5 mm long [to 3 mm long, fide Dixon & Kerrigan 2011], peltate, caducous. Inflorescence a many-flowered panicle, either male (with c. 30–60 flowers) or female (c. 5–10 flowers) [male inflorescence paniculate, female racemose, fide Zich et al. 2020]. Flowers 5-partite. Male flowers: perianth lobes ovate, 1–1.5 mm long, membranous; stamens 1–2 mm long; anthers subreniform. Female flowers: perianth lobes ovate to broadly ovate, 0.5–1 mm long, membranous, sometimes emarginate or bifid; staminodes rudimentary; ovary ovoid, 1.5–2 mm long; stigmatic arms bifid. Drupe ovoid to ± globular, 7–12 mm long, blue to purple-black; pedicel 2–6 mm long. See also Green (1994: 59), Dixon & Kerrigan (2011), Zich et al. (2020).
Grows in a wide range of soil types (basaltic, granitic, calcareous, sandy, humus-rich) and in a wide range of habitats (sandy beaches, beach forest, littoral rainforest, vine thickets/forest, monsoon forest, drier, more seasonal rainforest, sclerophyll forest) being somewhat mesophytic in wetter habitats and xerophytic in drier habitats.
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Primary and secondary forest, 0-900 m, on well drained soils including coral limestone, very often common locally (W. New Guinea and Solomons). Fl. fr. July-May.
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