Freylinia lanceolata is usually a shrub, sometimes a small tree that reaches 5 m in height (SA Tree List No. 670.1).
The leaves are narrowly elliptic or lanceolate. They are dull green, slightly curved, without hairs and with a prominent midrib especially noticed on the lower surfaces. The leaf tapers at the base and apex, the margins are entire and rolled under. There is hardly a petiole due to the tapering leaf-base.
The flowers are tubular, white to cream and dark yellow on the inside of the corolla tube and the corolla lobes surrounding the mouth.
The fruit is a small capsule that develops shortly after flowering and may be seen almost throughout the year (Coates Palgrave, 2002).