A long iron railroad bridge stretches across the upper right of the scene, supported by massive white pillars that cast blue shadows on the water below. Beneath the bridge, the calm river reflects the structure and the clouds, its surface broken only by the gentle ripples of a small sailboat gliding from the left. On the far bank, dense green foliage and trees rise behind the bridge, their forms softened by dappled light and the artist’s broken brushwork.

The sky is a pale, hazy blue, scattered with clouds tinged with pink and gold, echoing the warm tones in the smoke and the reflections below. Light falls from the left, illuminating the pillars and the sail, and creating shimmering patterns on the river’s surface. The composition is carefully balanced, with the strong diagonal of the bridge contrasting with the horizontal bands of water and sky.

Brushstrokes are visible throughout, especially in the water and foliage, where quick, varied marks suggest movement and the play of light. Touches of yellow, blue, and green are layered in the reflections, while the bridge is built up with strokes of grey, blue, and brown. The artist signs his name in the lower right corner, just above the grassy bank.

A steam train with several reddish-brown carriages crosses the bridge, emitting a plume of pale smoke that drifts into the sky above the structure. Two small figures are seated in the sailboat, their forms rendered with brief, indistinct brushstrokes. In the lower left corner, thin wooden stakes or posts emerge from the water near the riverbank.

The right edge of the painting is densely filled with dark green and blue foliage, with leaves and branches overlapping the bridge's supports. Sunlight glints off the tops of the bridge's pillars, while their shaded sides are rendered in cooler blue and lavender tones. The far left background shows a strip of distant land and trees, painted in muted greens and ochres, separating the water from the sky.

Loose, horizontal brushstrokes in the water create a sense of gentle current and capture the reflection of the sail and the bridge in broken, shimmering patches of color. Claude Monet painted Railroad Bridge, Argenteuil in 1873.