It is an annual cereal plant with numerous and dense stems, reaching 50-150 cm in height. The stems branch out already at the base. The leaves are 1.5 cm wide and up to 1 meter long.
The flowers are gathered in panicles up to 30 cm long, the spikelets are flat, 1 quill. The flowers are self-pollinating. The fruit is an 8x4 cm caryopsis that contains 30-100 grains.
A characteristic feature of seed rice roots is the presence of aerial crumb (aerenchyma), with large intercellular spaces filled with air.
Aerenchyma is found in underwater plants (rice is grown in waterlogged areas), increasing their buoyancy and facilitating floating.
