Directional Terms
To be up higher on the body.
What is superior?
A vertical plane that divides the body into anterior and posterior sections.
What is the coronal or frontal plane?
The brain will be found in this body cavity.
What is the cranial cavity?
The upper arm bone.
What is the humerus?
The biggest bone in the body that is found in the upper leg.
What is the femur?
To be lower on the body.
What is inferior?
A longitudinal plane that divides the body into right and left parts.
What is the sagittal or median plane.
The heart and lungs are in this cavity.
What is the thoracic cavity?
These two bones make the lower arm.
What is the radius and ulna?
The patella is also known as this.
What is the knee cap?
What is medial?
The imaginary plane that divides the body into superior and inferior parts.
What is the transverse or horizontal plane?
This cavity has the most organs located in it. For example the stomach, small intestine, kidneys, liver and pancreas are all found here.
(Not the urinary bladder or uterus)
What is the abdomen?
These are 14 of these bones in each hand.
What are phalenges?
These are 28 of these in our 10 toes.
What are the phalanges?
A body part closer to the point of attachment to the trunk.
What is proximal?
A longitudinal plane that divides the body into equal right and left parts.
What is the mid-sagittal plane?
This body cavity contains the spinal cord.
What is the spinal (or vertebral) cavity?
There are 8 bones that make up each wrist.
What are the carpals?
The heel is part of these seven bones in the ankle.
What are the tarsals?
Farther away from the point of attachment to the trunk.
What is distal?
For the planes of the body to be correct the body has to be standing in this position. (Upright, with the feet at shoulder width and parallel, toes forward. The upper limbs are held out to each side, and the palms of the hands face forward.)
What is anatomical position?
The thoracic cavity and abdominopelvic cavity combine to make this cavity.
What is the ventral (body) cavity?
These bones surround and protect the spinal cord.
What are the vertebrae?
These are the two bones in the lower leg
What are the tibia and fibula?