This species is characterized by its villose or tomentose pubescence, its subsessile to shortly petiolate leaves with a pair of swollen ant vesicles at the base of the blade or along the upper part of the petiole; its cymose corymbiform inflorescences with the axes generally becoming scorpoioid, its well developed calyx lobes, and its relatively large yellow corollas. The vesicles appear to be formed by a broadened basal portion of the leave blade about 1-3 cm long that is strongly revolute, forming a closed or nearly closed structure about 0.5-1 cm wide; at least sometimes these structures house ants. The calyx lobes and corolla are notably large for Hoffmannia.

Hoffmannia pseudovesiculifera is one of eight Hoffmannia species with ant vesicles found in Costa Rica, Panama, and adjacent northwestern Colombia. These share the characterisic pubescence, vesicles at the base of the leaf blade, and generally well developed inflorescences; however they vary in details of the inflorescence arrangement, leaf form and size, and calyx, corolla, and fruit details. The species and their distinctions are outined in the key to the vesiculate Central American Hoffmannia species on the species page for Hoffmannia vesciculifera.