| Term | Definition |
| Anatomical Position | - Errect body
- feet slightly apart
- head and toes forward
- arms at sides
- palms forward |
| Axial | The trunk of the body
- relates to head and the neck |
| Appendicular | hips on down
- appendages or limbs |
| inferior | the part of the body located below another
(body and torso) |
| Superior | the part of the body located above another
(body and torso)
- the heart is superior to the liver |
| Anterior/Ventral | nearer to or front of the body
- the sternum (breastbone) is anterior to the heart |
| posterior/Dorsal | Nearer to or at the back of the body
- the esophagus is posterior to the trachea (windpipe) |
| Medial | nearer to the midline
- the ulna is medial to the radius |
| lateral | farther from the midline
- the lungs are lateral to the heart |
| Intermediate | Between two structures
- the transverse colon is intermediate to the ascending and descending colons |
| Proximal | nearer to the attachment of a limb to the trunk; nearer to the origination of a structure
- the humerus is proximal to the radius |
| Distal | farther from the attachment of a limb to the trunk; father from the origination of a structure
- the phalanges are distal to he carpals |
| Superficial | toward or on the surface of the body
- The ribs are superficial to the lungs |
| deep | the ribs are deep to the skin of the chest and back |
| Sagittal Plane | a vertical plane that divides the body or organ into right and left sides |
| Midsagittal (medial) | when a plane passes through the midline of a body or an organ and divides it into two equal right and left sides |
| Frontal | divides the body into anterior and posterior planes |
| Transverse(horizontal) | divides the body or organ into superior and inferior portions |
| Oblique section | passes through the body or an organ at an oblique angle (any angle other than 90 degrees) |
| Dorsal Cavity | protect the nervous system and is divided into two subdivisions |
| cranial Cavity | within the skull and contains the brain |
| Vertebral | runs within the vertebral column and contains the spinal cord and beginnings of spinal nerves |
| Ventral Cavity | contains the internal organs (viscera) and is divided into two subdivisions; thoracic and abdominopelvic |
| Plural Cavities | each surrounds a lung |
| Mediastinum | central portion of thoracic cavity between the lungs, extends from sternum to vertebral column and from first rib to diaphragm
- contains heart thymus esophagus trachea and several large blood vessels |
| pericardial Cavity | surrounds the heart |
| Adbominopelvic Cavity | subdivided into abdominal and pelvic cavities |
| abdominal Cavity | contains; stomach spleen, lier, gallbladder, small intestine and most of the large intestine |
| Pelvic Cavity | lies within the pelvis and contains urinary bladder, portions of large intestine, and internal organs of reproduction and rectum |
