Shell of small, moderate, or rather large size, 7-44 mm., elongate-fusiform, usually with angulated whorls, rather distant strong axials, and typically, one. sometimes two distinct plications about the middle of the pillar. Protoconch small, conoidal of about 14 smooth whorls. Aperture narrowly pyriform, ending in a rather short slightly flexed unnotched spout-like anterior canal. Outer lip thin edged, with a broadly rounded moderately deep sinus occupying the whole of the shoulder slope, and accentuated in depth by an arcuate forward projection of the lower part of the lip. Radula a pair of slender slightly curved marginals, slightly barbed at the tip, and broadly expanded basally.

The separation of borsonid genera solely upon the basis of the number of pillar plaits can be deceptive, for although Borsonia, typically, has one plait and Cordieria two, there may be a second and even a rudimentary third plait in otherwise typical Borsonia.
A better criterion is the shell shape, which is elongate-pyriform, with a tall spire, and an excavated neck to a relatively long anterior canal, resembling Turricula, for Borsonia, and a more ovate-fusiform or biconic-fusiform shape for Cordieria, usually with only a slight neck and a rather short anterior canal. Also the sinus is relatively deep in Borsonia, but wide and shallow in Cordieria.
Still more puzzling are the claviform species, such as timorensis Schepman, 1913, that exhibit a single well formed pillar plait. Until the significance of pillar plaits is properly understood, all species exhibiting distinct pillar plaits are considered to belong to the Borsoniinae, but admittedly such a grouping is not necessarily morphologically sound.

Range — Paleocene to Pliocene of Europe, Oligocène to Pliocene of England, Oligocène of Mexico, Oligocène and Miocene of Australia, Oligocène to Pliocene of Indonesia, Okinawa and Japan. Recent from East Africa, 1644 metres, East Indies, 900-960 metres, South Australia, 300 fathoms, Caribbean and off Brazil, 350-390 fathoms.