This species is characterized by medium-sized, elliptic, petiolate leaves, tubular aristate stipules, lax paniculiform inflorescences with pedicellate flowers, undulate to denticulate calyx imbs 0.1-1.2 mm long, blue corollas with funnelform tubes 5-8 mm long and ovate, thin-textured lobes as long as or longer than the tube and 8-17 mm long, and oblate medium-sized fruits that are laterally flattened. The inflorescences usually have foliaceous bracts subtending the basalmost axes; similar foliaceous bracts are found in various species and also vary in development in most of those. Faramea glandulosa is diagnosed here in particular by its corollas with the lobes as long as or longer than the tubes. This species shows a good deal of morphological variation, in particular in leaf size and development of the venation, inflorescence size, corolla size, and proportional length of the lobes vs. tube.

Steyermark included these plants within the circumscription of Faramea multiflora, and there may be almost continuous variation in the proportional length of the corolla lobes in this species complex. Faramea multiflora is here separated based on its corollas with narrower tubes, which are cylindrical or narrowly funnelform, with somewhat fleshy lobes that are shorter than the tube. These two species are separated here based on corolla form, which is assumed to be related to pollination, and they appear to possibly have different habitats; further study that includes field work will be needed to understand these plants. The variation within Faramea glandulosa is notable and the systematics of this and sympatric populations of Faramea multiflora may be more complex than shown by the separation of two species. Within Faramea glandulosa the flowers vary from having corolla tubes 7 mm long and lobes 7 mm long (e.g., Wasshausen & Encarnación 1021), to having very robust corollas with tubes 6 mm long and lobes 17 mm long (e.g., Vásquez 38197).

The identity of the name Faramea glandulosa has been problematic because this name has been used for various species (e.g., Standley in sched., Taylor in various works). Standley (1936) used this name for generally the same species to which it is applied here, which he noted had corollas with the lobes equalling or longer than the tube, as in the plants here, but an overall length of 8-10 mm long, which does not correspond to the plants included in this species here or the type of Faramea glandulosa. Subsequently Taylor used the name Faramea glandulosa for plants similar to Faramea multiflora but with quickly deciduous stipules, larger fruits, and a brown or gray drying color. Those plants are now variously included in Faramea multiflora (Central American plants) or belong to some previously unrecognized species (South American plants). Standley (1936) also recognized Faramea maynensis as a separate species from Faramea glandulosa, which he characterized by corollas 12-17 mm long with the lobes equal to or shorter than the lobes; this description applies to plants here considered to belong variously to Faramea glandulosa, Faramea multiflora, and additional previously unrecognized species.

Faramea glandulosa has most often been confused with Faramea multiflora, as discussed above. Faramea glandulosa is also similar to Faramea cuencana, with regularly elliptic-oblong leaves, calyx limbs with well developed lobes, and corollas of similar form with generally shorter tubes and lobes, and significantly larger fruits.