Anatomical Terminology

Question 1

What is the anatomical position?

Answer 1

Standing upright
Facing forward
Hands by hips
Feet parallel and facing forward
Hands straight by your side

Question 2

What are the 4 anatomical planes?

Answer 2

Sagittal
Transverse
Frontal/Coronal
Oblique

Question 3

What is sagittal?

Answer 3

Vertical line - creates a left and right

Question 4

What are the 2 types of sagittal planes?

Answer 4

Median sagittal plane = vertical line perfectly in the middle

Parasagittal plane = vertical line is not perfectly down the middle

Question 5

What is the transverse plane?

Answer 5

Horizontal line - creates top (superior) and bottom (inferior)

Question 6

What is the frontal/coronal plane?

Answer 6

Vertical line - creates front (anterior) and back (posterior)

Question 7

What is the oblique plane?

Answer 7

Any section that randomly divides the body - any angle that isn’t horizontal or vertical

Question 8

What is inferior (caudal)?

Answer 8

Away from the head / towards the soles of the feet

e.g. knee is inferior to the stomach

Question 9

What is superior (cranial)?

Answer 9

Towards the head / higher or above the structure

e.g. eye is superior to nose

Question 10

What is posterior/dorsal?

Answer 10

Towards the back of the body

e.g. spine is posterior to abs

Question 11

What is anterior/ventral?

Answer 11

Towards the front of the body

e.g. abs are anterior to the spine

Question 12

What is proximal?*

Answer 12

The nearest point of attachment to a limb or structure.

Towards the trunk (center of body = torso).

e. g. the elbow is proximal to the hand
e. g.2 the wrist is proximal to the fingers

Question 13

What is distal?

Answer 13

The furthest away from the attachment or the trunk.

Away from the trunk

e.g. Hand is distal to the elbow

Question 14

What is superficial/external?

Answer 14

Towards the skin surface/outside body.

e.g. skin is superficial to liver

Question 15

What is deep/internal?

Answer 15

Towards the interior of the body

e.g. the liver is deep to the ribcage

Question 16

What is lateral?

Answer 16

Away from the midline/middle of the body (vertical)

e.g. the ear is lateral to the nose

Question 17

What is medial?

Answer 17

Towards the (vertical) midline of the body

e.g. ribcage is medial to the elbow

Question 18

What is flexion?

Answer 18

Movement that decreases angle of a joint with respect to the anatomical position.

e.g. flexion = bending knee backwards

Question 19

What is extension?

Answer 19

Movement that increases the angle of a joint with respect to the anatomical position

e.g. straightening the leg (unbending the knee)

Question 20

What is abduction?

Answer 20

Movement away from the mid-line

e.g. moving arm up

Question 21

What is adduction?

Answer 21

Movement towards the midline

e.g. moving arm back down

Question 22

What is medial/internal rotation?

Answer 22

Rotation towards the midline

e.g. bringing your leg inwards

Question 23

What is lateral/external?

Answer 23

Rotating movement away from the mid line

e.g. bringing your legs outwards

Question 24

What is supination?

Answer 24

Turning palm up (hand is in supination when in anatomical position)

Question 25

What is pronation?

Answer 25

Turning palm down (palm facing the floor)

Question 26

What is mid-pronation (use key example)?

Answer 26

Putting key in = pronation (palm facing floor) Turning key = mid-pronation (palm facing wall) Turned key completely = supination (palm facing up)

Question 27

What is dorsiflexion?

Answer 27

Decreasing the angle of the foot in regards to the anatomical position e.g. moving foot up towards the sky

Question 28

What is plantarflexion?

Answer 28

Increasing the angle of the foot in regards to the anatomical position e.g. moving foot towards the floor (toes touching floor)

Question 29

What is inversion?

Answer 29

Movement of the sole of foot towards midline e.g. twisting ankle inwards

Question 30

What is eversion?

Answer 30

Movement of the sole of the foot away from the midline e.g. twisting ankle outwards

Question 31

What is circumduction?

Answer 31

Conical movement of a limb extending from the joint at which movement is controlled.

Question 32

What is opposition?

Answer 32

Movement that brings fingers to thumb e.g. pinky to thumb

Question 33

What is reposition?

Answer 33

Movement that moves thumb away from finger

Question 34

What is protraction?

Answer 34

movement of a body part in the anterior direction = being drawn forwards e.g. leaning forwards

Question 35

What is retraction?

Answer 35

Movement of a body part posteriorly e.g. leaning backwards

Question 36

What is elevation?

Answer 36

Movement in the superior direction / going up e.g. moving jaw up to the sky

Question 37

What is depression?

Answer 37

Movement in the inferior direction e.g. moving jaw towards chest

Question 38

What is ipsilateral?

Answer 38

On the same side of the body (in regards to the midline so L&R)

Question 39

What is contralateral?

Answer 39

On opposite sides (in regards to the midline so L&R)