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The wood is strong, easy to saw and plane, and it takes a good finish. Immediately after sawing the wood should be treated with anti-stain chemicals. To obtain the attractive silver grain, boards should be quarter-sawn, which limits their width to about 20 cm. The wood is durable under cover, but durability in contact with the ground or when exposed to the weather is moderate to poor. It is prone to termite and marine borer attack, whereas the absorption of preservatives is moderate (95–130 kg/m³). The sapwood is susceptible to ''Lyctus'' attack.

Shrub or small tree up to 15 m tall (sometimes up to 50 m in tropical Asia); bole up to 40(–70) cm in diameter, occasionally with small buttresses; bark surface smooth to finely cracking or shallowly to deeply fissured; branches ascending-erect, slightly thickened at nodes. Leaves decussately opposite, simple; stipules lanceolate, up to 2 cm long, early caducous; petiole up to 1 cm long; blade narrowly obovate to elliptical, 5–10(–15) cm × 2–5(–10) cm, cuneate at base, acute or shortly acuminate at apex, margin revolute, entire or sometimes slightly toothed, leathery, glabrous, with black dots below, with many lateral veins. Inflorescence an axillary condensed cyme, distinctly resinous. Flowers bisexual, regular, (4–)5(–8)-merous, small, up to 2.5 mm in diameter, sessile; calyx shortly cup-shaped with triangular, thick lobes; petals free, clawed at base, laciniate at margins; disk annular; stamens twice the number of petals, free; ovary semi-inferior, 5(–8)-celled, style thick, stigma headlike, obscurely lobed. Fruit a globose, fleshy berry up to 7 mm in diameter, pink to red when ripe, several-seeded. Seedling with epigeal germination; hypocotyl elongated; cotyledons leafy, green.

''Carallia'' comprises about 10 species, of which ''Carallia brachiata'' is the most widespread, covering the whole distribution of the genus. The other species are confined to tropical Asia.