Stately tree with a dense crown, the lowest branches somewhat pendulous. Height up to 40 m, breadth to approx. 20 m. The bark remains smooth for a long time but later develops shallow grooves. Young twigs are greyish-brown with whitish hairs, later grey. The large leaves are asymmetrical, very rough and dark green. On the underside they are light green and hairy. In the autumn they turn yellow. The asymmetrical foot of the leaf covers one side of the short stalk, a characteristic of elm leaves. The brownish-violet flowers appear before the emergence of the leaves. The fruits, winged nutlets, are spread by the wind. U. glabra is not often used. Because it produces few root suckers it is often used as rootstock. Sometimes this leads to an impossible union causing the tree to snap at the point of the graft. Sensitive to Dutch elm disease.