Lianas to 8 m tall; stems to 3 cm in diam. Surface scales obvious, white to ferruginous, peltate, ca. 0.2 mm in diam. Branchlets together with petioles glabrous and sparsely to densely scaly. Leaves opposite; petiole 5-12 mm; leaf blade lanceolate, ovate-lanceolate, or narrowly elliptic, 5-10 × 3-6(-7) cm, both surfaces glabrous, sparsely to densely scaly, abaxially more densely so, base obtuse-rounded, apex abruptly caudate, cauda with rounded or obtuse tip; lateral veins in 4-6 pairs. Inflorescences terminal and axillary, compound, spikes 4-12 cm, usually grouped at branchlet apex and forming a panicle; axes glabrous, densely scaly; distal, flower-bearing part of spikes very condensed, capitate, not longer than 0.5 cm, or broadly cylindric or cylindric, 1-5 cm; bracts caducous, linear, very small. Flowers fragrant. Calyx tube distally funnelform-cupular, 5-7 mm, abaxially glabrous, densely scaly, adaxially with a ring of dense, coarse hairs not or only slightly exserted; lobes 4, broadly triangular, 0.5-1 mm, apex obtuse. Petals 4, white, 1.5-2 mm, clawed; limb obovate, narrowly elliptic, or oblanceolate. Stamens 8, exserted, ca. 4 mm. Fruit mid-brown, variable in shape and size, oblate, suborbicular, broadly ovoid, obovoid, or pyriform, 4-winged, 1.3-4 × 1.3-3.5 cm, glabrous, sparsely to densely scaly. Fl. Mar-Apr, fr. Apr-Jul.

Exell (in Steenis, Fl. Males., ser. 1, 4: 539. 1954) recognized Combretum punctatum and C. squamosum as subspecies, with C. punctatum subsp. punctatum in montane regions and subsp. squamosum in the lowlands. The present authors follow Exell, but prefer the rank of variety, for consistency within this treatment.

Forests, thickets, scrub; 500-1500 m. SW Guangdong, S Guangxi, Hainan, S Yunnan [Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam].