Mallee, sometimes a small tree, to 8 m high. Bark smooth, grey throughout, often with ribbons or flakes of shedding bark on lower trunk. Juvenile leaves narrowly lanceolate to ovate, grey-green. Adult leaves narrowly lanceolate to lanceolate, uncinate; lamina 6–10 cm long, 1–2 cm wide, shining, green; lateral veins faint, at 25°–35°; intramarginal vein up to 3 mm from margin; petiole terete, 8–15 mm long. Peduncle slightly flattened, 5–10 mm long; pedicels quadrangular, 2–5 mm long. Buds oblong or suburceolate, 4-angled; operculum conical or pyramidal, sometimes umbonate, 4–5 mm long and wide; hypanthium obpyramidal, 5–10 mm long, 4–5 mm wide. Fruits oblong or suburceolate, 4-angled, 5–15 mm long, 5–8 mm wide; valves 3 or 4. [For more recent description see subspecies profiles-Editor]