Ruffs are medium-sized, round-bodied waders with shortish bills and long legs, typically buff with scaly feather edges. Males in spring are extraordinary ornamented.

In its spring plumage the male Ruff is one of the most remarkable and eye-catching of all European birds, yet it is best known as a relatively dull, brown bird of the autumn. Adult females are much smaller than males and juveniles smaller still. They occupy a place between small waders such as sandpipers and large waders like godwits, and to match their medium size they have medium-length bills and legs. This gives them an ordinariness – outside the breeding season – that is itself characteristic, lacking extremes of shape or structure.