Tree, 4-20 m tall; trunk 5-25 cm dbh, often somewhat twisted; outer bark smooth, bearing fine, granular lenticels which wipe off easily; inner bark thin, tan; sap with faint, pleasant aroma; stems densely lenticellate, the younger parts (including petioles and branches of inflorescence) densely brown-tomentose. Leaves pinnate (juvenile plants often with some large simple leaves); petioles to 6 cm long (15 cm long on juvenile leaves); leaflets 3-11, oblong-elliptic to obovate, obtuse to truncate and sometimes emarginate at apex, obtuse to acute and inequilateral at base, 8-20 cm long and 2-6.5 cm wide (to 35 cm long and 15 cm wide on juveniles), densely short-pubescent to glabrate on veins above, usually papillate and glabrous to sparsely pubescent and with inconspicuous stalked glands below, the margin obscurely crenate to wavy. Inflorescences 15 cm or more long, paniculate, the panicles axillary or subterminal, to ca 2.5 cm long; flowers white, 5-parted, ca 2-2.7 mm long; sepals ovate to oblong, tomentose; petals villous, obovate, rounded or emarginate at apex, the margin fringed, the scales fused to margins of petals, deeply divided in middle; disk thick, bowl-shaped, weakly lobed, densely velutinous except on inner margin; stamens 8, villous below middle; staminate flowers with the stamens to 3.5 mm long, exserted, the pistillode with 3 minute styles; bisexual flowers with the stamens ca 1.5 mm long; ovary ovoid, tomentose, gradually tapered to a stout style; style and stigmas pubescent, together about equaling the ovary; stigmas 3, ca 1.5 mm long, divergent. Capsules subglobose to trilobate, short-stipitate, to ca 2.5 cm diam at maturity, greatly shrinking upon drying and becoming more markedly trilobate; valves thick, woody, densely dark-brown-tomentose outside, woolly inside; seeds black, shiny, ca 1 cm long, enveloped at base with an orange-yellow aril. Croat 11076, 11981. Like most other Cupania, this species is variable throughout its range, especially in the type and degree of pubescence. It merges almost imperceptibly at times with a number of other species, including C. americana L. (West Indies and northern South America), C. scrobiculata L. C. Rich., and C. oblongifolia Mart. (Brazil). C. papillosa Radlk., segregated by Radlkofer on the basis of the dense papillations and glandular trichomes on the lower surface, is only an extreme form of this species. See Fig. 338.