In botany, the following terms are used to describe the shape of plant leaves:

• Acicular: slender and pointed
• Alternate (alternifolia): Arranged alternately
• Bipinnate (bipinnata): Each leaflet also pinnate
• Cordate (cordata): Heart-shaped, stem attaches to cleft
• Cuneate: Triangular, stem attaches to point
• Deltoid: Triangular, stem attaches to side
• Digitate (digitata): Divided into finger-like lobes
• Elliptic (elliptica): Oval, with a short point
• Falcate: sickle-shaped
• Flabellate: Semi-circular, or fan-like
• Hastate: shaped like a spear point, with flaring pointed lobes at the base
• Lance-shaped, lanceolate (lanceolata): Long, wider in the middle

• Linear: Long and very narrow
• Lobed (lobata): With several points
• Obcordate: Heart-shaped, stem attaches to tapering point
• Oblanceolate (oblanceolata): Top wider than bottom
• Obovate: Teardrop-shaped, stem attaches to tapering point
• Opposite (oppositifolia): Leaves opposite one another
• Orbicular: Circular
• Ovate (ovata): Oval, egg-shaped, with a tapering point
• Palmate (palmata): Divided into many lobes
• Peltate (peltata): Rounded, stem underneath
• Perfoliate (perfoliata): Stem through the leaves
• Pinnate (pinnata): Two rows of leaflets
  • odd pinnate : pinnate with a terminal leaflet
  • paripinnate, even-pinnate : pinnate lacking a terminal leaflet
• Pinnatisect (pinnatifida): Cut, but not to the midrib
• Reniform: Kidney-shaped
• Rhomboid (rhomboidalis): Diamond-shaped
• Rosette: Leaves in close rings
• Round (rotundifolia): Circular
• Spatulate, spathulate (spathulata): Spoon-shaped
• Spear-shaped (hastata): Pointed, with barbs
• Subulate: Awl-shaped

• Sword-shaped (ensiformis): Long, thin, pointed
• Trifoliate, ternate (trifoliata): Divided into three leaflets
• Tripinnate (tripinnata): Each leaflet divided into three
• Unifoliate : with a single leaf
• Whorled: In circles round the stem