Pale Corydalis is an annual or biennial with 1 to several branched stems reaching up to 6 dm high. The leaves have long petioles and are pinnately divided into 3-5 pairs of leaflets that are subsequently divided 1-2 times into narrowly elliptic segments that are 2-5 mm wide. The foliage is glabrous and covered with a thin, whitish wax that rubs off. 3-10 flowers are borne on short, spreading to drooping stalks at the top of the branches. The pinkish, yellow-tipped corolla is 10-15 mm long and composed of 4 petals: 2 outer and 2 inner. The outer petals appear to form a tube with the stalk attached near the middle, while the inner tubes are smaller and joined at the tips. The 2 pinkish, membranous sepals are ca. 3 mm long and usually fall off early in flower. There are 6 stamens that are united into 2 groups. The linear capsules are 30-45 mm long and are held erect at maturity.