Lateral fields with four obscure incisures. Lip region low, flattened, almost 4 times as wide as high, bearing 2 annules. Spear 17u long with peculiar shaped knobs. Isthmus slender, more than twice as long as body width, with nerve ring slightly anterior to middle. Excretory pore and hemizonid opposite ring. Esophageal lobe an outstanding feature, being more than twice as long as body width. Posterior uterine branch shorter than body diameter. Tail slightly bent with phasmids near middle. Males unknown.
Pratylenchus tenuis is distinctive because of the low, flattened lip region, slender spear with distinctive shaped knobs, long isthmus and unusually elongate esophageal lobe.