Rhizomes present. Cauline stems terete, often rusty spotted, 6--110 cm; nodal glands absent. Turions absent. Leaves both submersed and floating or floating absent, ± spirally arranged. Submersed leaves petiolate, lax; stipules persistent, conspicuous, convolute, free from blade, light brown, not ligulate, 1.5--11.7 cm, not fibrous, not shredding at tip, apex acute; petioles terete, 0.9--11.5 cm; blade light to dark green, ovate to oblanceolate, distinctly arcuate, 5--12.5 cm ´ 15--58 mm, base rounded to acute, without basal lobes, not clasping, margins entire, crispate, apex not hoodlike, acute to round-apiculate, lacunae absent; veins 19--49. Floating leaves: petioles continuous in color to apex, 2.3--22.6 cm; blade adaxially light green, lanceolate to round elliptic, 4.3--9.2 cm ´ 25--38 mcm, base rounded to cordate, apex acute to rounded; veins 27--49. Inflorescences unbranched, emersed; peduncles not dimorphic, terminal or axillary, erect, cylindric, 4.5--22.3 cm; spikes not dimorphic, cylindric, 34--65 mm. Fruits sessile, reddish brown, obovoid, turgid, abaxially keeled, laterally ridged, 5--6.7 ´ 4.5--5.2 mm, lateral ridges without points; beak erect, 0.5--0.8 mm; sides without basal tubercles; embryo with full spiral. 2n = 52. Flowering summer--fall. Waters of lakes, ponds, streams, and rivers; 0--1900(--2900) m; B.C., Man., N.B., Nfld. and Labr. (Nfld.), N.S., Ont., Que., Sask.; Ala., Ark., Calif., Conn., Ga., Idaho, Ill., Ind., Iowa, Kans., Maine, Md., Mass., Mich., Minn., Mo., Mont., Nebr., N.H., N.J., N.Y., N.C., Ohio, Okla., Oreg., Pa., R.I., S.Dak., Tenn., Vt., Va., Wash., W.Va., Wis., Wyo. No specimens have been seen from Kentucky or Texas, but the species is to be expected there. Potamogeton amplifolius is common throughout much of North America. Its submersed leaves are larger than those of most other species of Potamogeton, are arcuate, and have more veins than do any other species.

One hybrid, Potamogeton amplifolius ´ P. illinoensis (= P. ´ scoliophyllus Hagström), has been described.