Little economic importance. The subfamilies are segregated based on floral morphology. Herbs, woody vines or trees. Leaves alternat, pinnate, bipinnate, simple or palmate, stipulate. Inflorescence of solitary or clustered axillary flowers, racemes, spikes, heads or umbels.
Flowers perfect, regular to very irregular.
Hypanthium present or absent. Sepals 5, connate. Fruit a legume, loment or indehiscent pod. Many members possess a symbiotic relationship with a microrganism that fixes nitrogen, enhancing the soils these plants inhabit. Inflorescence of cymose umbels.