Trees, monoecious (always?). Twigs never angular or ridged, without lenticels, sometimes flaky. Leaves membranous or chartaceous, slightly brittle when dry, lower surface not pale, not papillose, dots absent; reticulation lax, distinct or not. Inflorescences with male and female flowers mixed (always?), sometimes pseudoterminal (terminal bud of twig abortive), paniculate, branched from near the base; basal cataphylls caducous; bracts caducous; flowers in small clusters, buds either in the same or in different stages of development. Flowers short or long pedicellate, at base not articulated; bracteole absent. Male flowers: perianth rotate, thinly leathery, inside pubescent, yellowish or (in New Guinea) bright red; buds small, ellipsoid, ovoid, or subglobose, cleft to c. 3/4 to nearly the base, lobes 3-5, spread or recurved in anthesis; androecium with androphore narrow, glabrous, synandrium small, (depressed) globose or short-ellipsoid, with 2-6 completely fused, short (0.5 mm or less) elliptic anthers. Female flowers: similar to male; ovary ovoid, glabrous, stigma sessile, minute, 2-lobed, lobes narrow or broad and 2-5-lobu-late. Infructescences small or large panicles, to 30 cm long. Fruits ellipsoid or (ob)ovoid, glabrous, yellow or purplish; pericarp thin or thick, fleshy-leathery; aril yellowish (?) or red, subentire or to halfway laciniate; seeds usually pointed at apex, variegated; albumen ruminate, without (?) starch; embryo incompletely known.
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