Naming Skeletal Muscles
Learning Objectives
- Describe the criteria used to name skeletal muscles
- Explain how understanding the muscle names helps describe shapes, location, and actions of various muscles

Table 1. Understanding a Muscle Name from the Latin | |||||
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Example | Word | Latin Root 1 | Latin Root 2 | Meaning | Translation |
abductor digiti minimi | abductor | ab = away from | duct = to move | a muscle that moves away from | A muscle that moves the little finger or toe away |
digiti | digitus = digit | refers to a finger or toe | |||
minimi | minimus = mini, tiny | little | |||
adductor digiti minimi | adductor | ad = to, toward | duct = to move | a muscle that moves towards | A muscle that moves the little finger or toe toward |
digiti | digitus = digit | refers to a finger or toe | |||
minimi | minimus = mini, tiny | little |
Table 2. Mnemonic Device for Latin Roots | ||
---|---|---|
Example | Latin or Greek Translation | Mnemonic Device |
ad | to; toward | ADvance toward your goal |
ab | away from | n/a |
sub | under | SUBmarines move under water. |
ductor | something that moves | A conDUCTOR makes a train move. |
anti | against | If you are antisocial, you are against engaging in social activities. |
epi | on top of | n/a |
apo | to the side of | n/a |
longissimus | longest | “Longissimus” is longer than the word “long.” |
longus | long | long |
brevis | short | brief |
maximus | large | max |
medius | medium | “Medius” and “medium” both begin with “med.” |
minimus | tiny; little | mini |
rectus | straight | To RECTify a situation is to straighten it out. |
multi | many | If something is MULTIcolored, it has many colors. |
uni | one | A UNIcorn has one horn. |
bi/di | two | If a ring is DIcast, it is made of two metals. |
tri | three | TRIple the amount of money is three times as much. |
quad | four | QUADruplets are four children born at one birth. |
externus | outside | EXternal |
internus | inside | INternal |
The skeletal muscle’s anatomical location or its relationship to a particular bone often determines its name. For example, the frontalis muscle is located on top of the frontal bone of the skull. Similarly, the shapes of some muscles are very distinctive and the names, such as orbicularis, reflect the shape. For the buttocks, the size of the muscles influences the names: gluteus maximus (largest), gluteus medius (medium), and the gluteus minimus (smallest). Names were given to indicate length— brevis (short), longus (long)—and to identify position relative to the midline: lateralis (to the outside away from the midline), and medialis (toward the midline). The direction of the muscle fibers and fascicles are used to describe muscles relative to the midline, such as the rectus (straight) abdominis, or the oblique (at an angle) muscles of the abdomen.
Some muscle names indicate the number of muscles in a group. One example of this is the quadriceps, a group of four muscles located on the anterior (front) thigh. Other muscle names can provide information as to how many origins a particular muscle has, such as the biceps brachii. The prefix bi indicates that the muscle has two origins and tri indicates three origins.
The location of a muscle’s attachment can also appear in its name. When the name of a muscle is based on the attachments, the origin is always named first. For instance, the sternocleidomastoid muscle of the neck has a dual origin on the sternum (sterno) and clavicle (cleido), and it inserts on the mastoid process of the temporal bone. The last feature by which to name a muscle is its action. When muscles are named for the movement they produce, one can find action words in their name. Some examples are flexor (decreases the angle at the joint), extensor (increases the angle at the joint), abductor (moves the bone away from the midline), or adductor (moves the bone toward the midline).
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