Simple and double teeth are noticeable along the edge of the sheet, longitudinal plates along the vein
Green, dark green or brownish moss, forming large loose tufts. The stem 3-5 (8-10) cm long, usually simple, at the base with rhizoids .
The lower leaves are scaly, reddish, pressed against the stem. The upper leaves, when dried, are curly, in the wet state they are wavy, linear-lanceolate, usually with a pointed end, 5–9 mm long and 1–1.5 mm wide. The edge of the leaves with single and paired teeth almost to the very base, with 1-3 rows of narrow swollen cells. The vein is narrow, reaches the top of the leaf, from the ventral (lower) side with 2-6 plates 3-5 cm high. Cells of leaf blade 15–35 mm, rounded-angular.
Sporogon , as a rule, is solitary (forms with 2-3 sporogon are described). The box is cylindrical, usually curved, red-brown, up to 5 (8) mm long and up to 1 mm wide. Cirrus with 32 teeth up to 0.5 mm long. The lid is almost equal in length to the box itself, coracoid, with a hemispherical base. The leg is thick, red-brown, 2-4 cm long.
Spores 16-28 microns, yellow-green, ripen in late autumn.
Ordinary moss in forest-steppe and south-taiga zones, north and south is much less common. Most often found on soil in forests, often in weedy places. Distributed throughout Europe, in North Africa, Asia Minor, South Siberia, the Far East, Japan, and North America.
