Drooping sedge is a graminoid, 30-80cm tall, with 2-4 lateral spikes, 1 per node, each overlapping the 1 above, uncrowded, and nodding or drooping at maturity. Pistillate spikes have 25-50 perigynia, are narrowly cylindric but broader and more densely flowered at the distal end. The terminal spike is male or gynecandrous with a few female flowers distally. Perigynia are green to golden green at maturity, strongly 2-ribbed but otherwise veinless or nearly so, loosely envelop achenes, lance-ovoid, membranous, base have short stipe, apex tapering to flattened, and glabrous. The beak is often bent and with minute hyaline teeth, achenes are substipitate. It has 2-3 basal sheaths that are green or tinged with maroon, bladeless, very short or absent, and glabrous, others are green on back and white-hyaline on front, flat, and glabrous.
It can be distinguished from other Carex species in the Hymenochlaenae section by its often bent beak and perigynia with only 2 veins.