FEATURES OF BONES: DESCRIPTIONS AND EXAMPLES

The following terms will be used to describe and name features of bones which you are about to learn. Familiarize yourself with the list first, then learn the terms as you learn the bones of the body and the names and function of their features. I have listed example features starting with the skull and working down to the femur.

Name	Description	Example
Meatus	canal-like passage way	temporal bone: ext auditory meatus
Process	a projection from a bone	temporal bone: zygomatic process
Fissure	narrow slit-like opening	orbit: superior & inferior fissures
Sinus	cavity within a bone, air & mucousmembranefacial sinuses	frontal and maxillary sinuses ethmoid sinuses
Foramen	round opening through bone	foramen magnum, mental foramen
Ramus	arm-like extension of bone	mandibular ramus
Condyle	rounded knuckle like articular surface	mandibular condyle, femur: distal
Fossa	shallow depression, often articular	temporal: mandibular fossa
Tubercle	small rounded projection	humerus: greater & lesser
Groove	furrow	humerus: intertubercular groove
Head	rounded expansion, carried on neck	humerus: proximal end, femur
Tuberosity	large rounded projection	humerus: deltoid tuberosity
Epicondyle	elevated area on or above condyle	humerus: lateral & medial
Facet	smooth, nearly flat articular surface	vertebral facets
Crest	prominent narrow ridge	os coxa: iliac crest
Spine	sharp, slender pointed projection	os coxa: anterior sup. iliac spines ischial spines
Trochanter	large, blunt process	femur: proximal end
Line	narrow low ridge	femur: linea aspera