Anatomical terminology

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Anatomists and health care providers use anatomical terminology and medical terminology intermittently. These languages can be bewildering to the uninitiated, however the purpose of this language is not to confuse, but rather to increase precision and reduce medical errors. For example, is a scar “above the wrist” located on the forearm two or three inches away from the hand? Or is it at the base of the hand? Is it on the palm-side or back-side? By using precise anatomical terminology, ambiguity is eliminated. Anatomical terms derive from ancient Greek and Latin words, and because these languages are no longer used in everyday conversation, the meaning of their words does not change.[1]

Anatomical vocabulary[edit]

Anatomical terms are made up of roots, prefixes, and suffixes. The root of a term often refers to an organ, tissue, or condition, whereas the prefix or suffix often describes the root. For example, in the disorder hypertension, the prefix “hyper-” means “high” or “over,” and the root word “tension” refers to pressure, so the word “hypertension” refers to abnormally high blood pressure. The roots, prefixes and suffixes are often derived from Greek or Latin, and often quite dissimilar from their English-language variants.[1]


The first word tells us what we are speaking about, the second describes it, and the third points to location.[citation needed]

Relative location[edit]

The anatomical position, with terms of relative location noted.

Anatomical terminology is often chosen to highlight the relative location of body structures. For instance, an anatomist might describe one band of tissue as “inferior to” another or a physician might describe a tumor as “superficial to” a deeper body structure. Terms are used to define the relative location of body structures in a body that is positioned in the anatomical position, which is standing, feet apace, with palms forward and thumbs facing outwards.[1]




  • Proximal and distal, which describe a position that is closer (proximal) or further (distal) from the trunk of the body. For example, the shoulder is proximal to the arm, and the foot is distal to the knee.
  • Ventral and Dorsal, which describe structures derived from the front (ventral) and back (dorsal) of the embryo, before limb rotation.
  • Occasionally, sinister for left, and dexter for right are used.[citation needed]
The skull uses different terminology, due to its embryonic origin of neuraxis.

Skull and brain[edit]




When speaking of the arm different terminology is often used, so as to take account of the supination action the arm can perform. Therefor the terms ventral for anterior and dorsal for posterior are used preferentially. Aside from this additional terms are employed:

  • Radial referring to the radius bone, seen laterally in the anatomical position.
  • Ulnar referring to the ulna bone, medially positioned when in the anatomical position.


The three anatomical planes of the body: the sagital, transverse (or horizontal), frontal planes.



Functional state[edit]


  • Anastamoses refers to the connection between two structures previously branched out, such as blood vessels or leaf veins.
  • Patent, meaning a structure such as an artery or vein that abnormally remains open, such as a patent ductus arteriosus, referring to the ductus arteriosus which normally becomes ligamentum arteriosum within three weeks of birth.


A body that is lying down is described as either prone or supine. Prone describes a face-down orientation, and supine describes a face up orientation. These terms are sometimes used in describing the position of the body during specific physical examinations or surgical procedures.[1]




When describing the position of anatomical structures, landmarks may be used to describe location. These landmarks may include structures, such as the umbilicus or sternum, or anatomical lines, such as the midclavicular line from the centre of the clavicle.

Body cavities[edit]

Different body cavities (anterior mediastinum not visible)


The ventral cavity includes the thoracic and abdominopelvic cavities and their subdivisions. The dorsal cavity includes the cranial and spinal cavities. This illustration shows a lateral and anterior view of the body and highlights the body cavities with different colors.[1]







Abdominal regions are used for example to localize pain.







Serous membrane

A serous membrane (also referred to as a serosa) is a thin membrane that covers the walls of organs in the thoracic and abdominal cavities. The serous membranes have two layers; parietal and visceral, surrounding a fluid filled space.[1] The visceral layer of the membrane covers the organ (the viscera), and the parietal layer lines the walls of the body cavity (pariet- refers to a cavity wall). . Between the parietal and visceral layers is a very thin, fluid-filled serous space, or cavity.[1] An example of a serous cavities include the pericardium, which surrounds the heart.[1]


Body Movements I.jpg
Body Movements II.jpg



General movements[edit]

General motion[edit]

Terms describing motion in general include:

  • Internal rotation (or medial rotation) and External rotation (or lateral rotation) refers to rotation towards (internal) or away from (external) the center of the body. For example, the asana posture in yoga requires the legs to be externally rotated.[citation needed]
  • Elevation and Depression refers to movement in a superior (elevation) or inferior (depression) direction. For example, a person saluting must elevate their arm.[clarification needed]

Special motions of the hands and feet[edit]

These terms refer to movements that are regarded as unique to the hands and feet:[3] :590–7

  • Dorsiflexion and Plantarflexion refers to flexion (dorsiflexion) or extension of the foot at the ankle. For example, dorsiflexion occurs when pressing the brake pedal of a car.
  • Pronation and Supination refer to rotation of the forearm or foot so that in the anatomical position the palm or sole is facing anteriorly (supination) or posteriorly (pronation) rotation of the forearm. For example, a person skiing must pronate their arms in order to grasp the skis.
  • Eversion and Inversion refer to movements that tilt the sole of the foot away from (eversion) or towards (inversion) the midline of the body.

Other special motions[edit]

Other terms include:

  • Protraction and Retraction refer to an anterior (protraction) or posterior (retraction) movement of the arm at the shoulders.
  • Circumduction refers to the circular (or, more precisely, conical) movement of a body part, such as a ball-and-socket joint or the eye. It consists of a combination of flexion, extension, adduction, and abduction. "Windmilling" the arms or rotating the hand from the wrist are examples of circumductive movement.
  • Opposition – A motion involving a grasping of the thumb and fingers.
  • Reposition – To release an object by spreading the fingers and thumb.
  • Reciprocal motion of a joint – Alternating motion in opposing directions, such as the elbow alternating between flexion and extension.
  • Protrusion and Retrusion are sometimes used to describe the anterior (protrusion) and posterior (retrusion) movement of the jaw.




Agonist and antagonist muscles[edit]


Skeletal and smooth muscle[edit]

The skeletal muscles of the body typically come in seven different general shapes. Muscle Shapes and Fiber Alignment This figure shows the human body with the major muscle groups labeled.





Systemic and regional approaches to anatomy[edit]

In the systematic approach to the study of anatomy, each system of the body, such as the digestive system, is studied as a thing in itself.[5] The regional approach observes all aspects of a particular region at one time.[5] For example, each muscle, organ, bone, nerve and any other structure in the abdomen is studied together, then the student continues in this fashion with each region. The regional approach better facilitates study with dissection, while the systematic approach is appreciated for its comprehensive look at each system throughout the body.

Anatomical variation[edit]


Additional images[edit]

See also[edit]


This Wikipedia entry incorporates text from the freely licenced Connexions [1] edition of Anatomy & Physiology [2] text-book by OpenStax College

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t "Anatomy & Physiology". Openstax college at Connexions. Retrieved November 16, 2013. 
  3. ^ Swartz, Mark H. (2010). Textbook of physical diagnosis : history and examination (6th ed. ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Saunders/Elsevier. ISBN 978-1-4160-6203-5. 
  5. ^ a b "Introduction page, "Anatomy of the Human Body". Henry Gray. 20th edition. 1918". Retrieved 19 March 2007. 

Further reading[edit]

  • Drake, Richard; Vogl, Wayne; Mitchell, Adam (2004). Gray’s Anatomy for Students. Churchill Livingstone. ISBN 0-443-06612-4. 