Anatomical directional terms

• Inferior - below, lower down
• Cranial - towards the head
• Superior - above, higher up
• Medial - closer to midline
• Transverse Plane refers to dividing the body into superior and inferior (upper and lower)
• Sagittal plane divides the body into right and left sides
• Frontal plane is also known as coronal plane
• Proximal = nearer to origin or attachment point
• Distal = farther from origin or attachment point
• Anterior = front side
• Posterior = backside
• Superficial = closer to surface
• Deep = further away from the surface
• Lateral = away from midline
• Caudal = toward tail end
• Intermediate = between middle and outer end of body
• Coronal plane divides the body into front and back