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Learning strategies
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Learning strategies

Use these carpal bones quizzes to remember carpal bones for good!

Author: Molly Smith, DipCNM, mBANT • Reviewer: Dimitrios Mytilinaios, MD, PhD
Last reviewed: October 30, 2023
Reading time: 4 minutes

Recommended video: Carpal bones [14:11]
The eight bones of the wrist, known as the carpal bones, and related bony landmarks.

Got a wrist and hand anatomy exam coming up and worried about how to remember the carpal bones - or even how to learn them in the first place? The task of memorization can certainly seem a little daunting when you see how similar they all look to one another. 

Fear not, we’ve created this article to help you get a grip on this topic as fast as possible. After using a mixture of our intelligent carpal bones quizzes, videos and diagram labeling exercises, you’re sure to feel ready to walk into your exam with confidence. 

Unlabeled diagram showing the carpal bones (Download free PDF below!)
Contents
  1. How to remember carpal bones
  2. Test your identification skills with our labeling worksheets
    1. Carpal bones labeled and unlabeled
  3. Identify and improve your weak spots with exam-style quizzes
  4. Sources
+ Show all

How to remember carpal bones

Let’s start with an overview of carpal bone anatomy. The carpal bones refer to eight bones in your wrist. They are divided into two rows - proximal and distal - with each row comprised of 4 bones each. 

In terms of the carpal bone names, on the proximal row we find:

And one the distal row, we find:

  • The trapezium bone
  • The trapezoid bone
  • The capitate bone
  • The hamate bone


Once you’re done watching the video, you’re going to solidify your memory of the name and location of each bone by using our carpal bones diagram worksheets.

Test your identification skills with our labeling worksheets

Now you’ve learned all about the carpal bones names and their location, it’s time to hone your identification skills. For this we’ll be looking at the carpals labeled on the diagram below.

Spend a few moments looking over this diagram. The goal is to engrave the diagram in your mind, allowing you to clearly associate the name and function of each bone when you see them presented in your exam, or when you need to remember their anatomy in your day-to-day clinical practice.

Once you’re feeling confident that you know where everything is, you can test your true knowledge by labeling each bone yourself on the unlabeled carpal bones diagram underneath. 

Carpal bones labeled and unlabeled

The carpal bones names are labeled on the first diagram, while the second diagram is completely blank, ready for you to fill in for yourself. 

Don’t worry if you don’t get everything right the first time around - it’s easy to get these carpal bones names mixed up, or for them to fly out of your memory correctly. In the next section, we’re going to explore our carpal bones quiz and how they can help you fill in all of those little gaps in your knowledge. 

DOWNLOAD PDF WORKSHEET (BLANK) DOWNLOAD PDF WORKSHEET (LABELED)

Identify and improve your weak spots with exam-style quizzes

Now you’ve seen the carpal bones labeled and unlabeled, it’s time to move on to our interactive carpal bones quizzes. With these quizzes, you’ll have the opportunity to put your identification skills into action - literally. Choose from basic identification, advanced identification, clinical question bank questions or even “intelligent mix” - a combination of all of the above. 

Powered by an intelligent algorithm, these quizzes automatically learn your weak spots and give you more questions on those topics accordingly. The result? You’ll ace this topic faster and more efficiently, allowing you to start revising for your next exam topic with plenty of time left on the clock. Start quizzing right away by clicking the blue “Start quiz” button below. 

Did you enjoy learning with these carpal bones quizzes and labeled diagrams? We have several similar guides on popular exam topics! Check them out in our free quiz guide library. 

Sources

Layout: Molly Smith

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