Maerua angolensis forms quite a thick, roundish crown; this evergreen tree can grow up to 15 m tall in its natural environment, but only reaches a height of about 7 to 9 m in the domestic garden. The bark on young stems turns from light purple to a yellowish colour and coarse lenticels (raised pores in the stem of a woody plant that allow gas exchange), are visible. The lenticels tend to become smoother and turn from a light grey to a darker grey as they mature; they also peel off naturally, in small scales.

The simple, glossy leaves are dark green and paler below; tiny hairs cover the surface of the leaves. The leaf blade, when mature, is ± 70 mm long and 12 mm wide. The base of the leaf is rounded, with a light coloured midrib, which is quite visible on the underside of the leaf. Leaf venation is more bulging on the upper surface of the leaf. An interesting feature about the ± 30 mm long leaf stalk is that it thickens at the base of the leaf blade and it makes a unique bend near the leaf base.

The sweetly scented flowers appear in terminal clusters, interestingly without petals, but green sepals are present, with a large number of pale white to pink stamens about ± 50 mm long. Flowering period is winter to midsummer (August to December).

The fruit takes the form of a non-splitting pseudopod (elongated bean-like pod) which is ± 160 mm long; the pod is constricted around the seeds. The fruits ripen in summer but remain on the tree for many months. The rounded, brown seeds are embedded in a slimy pulp.