ScaphoidBoat-shaped, the first bone of the proximal row from the thumb side. It meets the radius at the wrist joint.
LunateMoon-shaped. With the scaphoid it meets the end of the radius. That forms the wrist joint.
TriquetrumThree-cornered. It does not touch the ulna. A pad of fibrocartilage, the articular disc, lies between them.
PisiformPea-shaped. It sits on the front of the triquetrum. It lies inside the tendon of a forearm muscle, and makes the bump at the base of the hand on the little-finger side.
TrapeziumThe first bone of the distal row from the thumb side. It carries the first metacarpal, the bone at the base of the thumb.
TrapezoidThe small bone between the trapezium and the capitate. It carries the second metacarpal.
CapitateHead-shaped. It sits in the middle of the distal row. It carries the third metacarpal.
HamateThe hooked bone at the little-finger end of the distal row. It carries the fourth and fifth metacarpals.
Tubercle of the scaphoidA bump on the palm side of the scaphoid. One end of the flexor retinaculum is fixed to it.
Tubercle of the trapeziumA ridge on the palm side of the trapezium. With the tubercle of the scaphoid it forms the thumb-side wall of the carpal tunnel.
Hook of the hamateA bony hook standing out from the palm side of the hamate. With the pisiform it forms the little-finger wall of the carpal tunnel.
The joints 5
Carpometacarpal jointsWhere each metacarpal's base meets a bone of the distal row.
Midcarpal jointThe S-shaped joint between the proximal row and the distal row. With the wrist joint it gives the hand all its movement at the wrist.
Wrist joint (radiocarpal)The end of the radius meets the proximal row of carpal bones. The articular disc lies beside the radius.
Articular discA pad of fibrocartilage that separates the ulna from the carpal bones. It runs from the radius to the styloid process of the ulna.
Distal radioulnar jointIt lets the radius turn around the ulna. Here the head of the ulna fits the ulnar notch of the radius.
The carpal tunnel 6
Flexor retinaculumA strong band, the roof of the carpal tunnel. It runs from the scaphoid and trapezium to the pisiform and the hook of the hamate.
Carpal tunnelThe passage between the arch of carpal bones and the flexor retinaculum. Nine tendons and one nerve pass through it into the hand.
Median nerveThe one nerve in the carpal tunnel. Beyond the tunnel it divides into branches for the hand.
Flexor digitorum superficialis tendonsFour tendons, one for each finger. They share one synovial sheath with the four tendons below them.
Flexor digitorum profundus tendonsFour tendons, one for each finger, that lie deeper in the tunnel.
Flexor pollicis longus tendonThe long flexor tendon of the thumb. It runs through the tunnel in a synovial sheath of its own.
How this list was compiled: Every name and detail line was checked on 2026-09-30 against OpenStax Anatomy and Physiology 2e, section 8.2 Bones of the Upper Limb, https://openstax.org/books/anatomy-and-physiology-2e/pages/8-2-bones-of-the-upper-limb; TeachMeAnatomy, Bones of the Hand, https://teachmeanatomy.info/upper-limb/bones/bones-of-the-hand-carpals-metacarpals-and-phalanges/, and The Carpal Tunnel, https://teachmeanatomy.info/upper-limb/areas/carpal-tunnel/; Wikipedia: Carpal bones, Wrist, Carpal tunnel, Flexor retinaculum of the hand; and Gray, Anatomy of the Human Body, 1918, https://archive.org/details/anatomyofhumanbo00grayrich (the articular disk). The wording is in our own words. Licence: own work
The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry; nothing traced. Licence: own work
How it works
A wrist bones quiz in three drawings, thumb side on the left. The first asks you to label the specific carpal bones; the second adds the joints, and the third cuts across the carpal tunnel.
Read the full guide
Two rows of four
The row next to the forearm runs scaphoid, lunate, triquetrum, pisiform from the thumb side. The row next to the palm runs trapezium, trapezoid, capitate, hamate. The pisiform sits on the front of the triquetrum. Every answer writes the name in, so a finished round leaves the bones of the wrist labeled.
The joints and the tunnel
Only the scaphoid and lunate touch the radius; the ulna touches no carpal bone. In the cut, the bones form an arch and the flexor retinaculum bridges it, from the scaphoid and trapezium to the pisiform and the hook of the hamate.
So Long To Pinky, Here Comes The Thumb: the row by the forearm from the thumb side, then the other row back again.
Trapezium or trapezoid? The trapezium is the one under the thumb.
The tendons in the tunnel come in two rows of four, with the thumb tendon on its own.
Questions and answers
What are the eight carpal bones?
Scaphoid, lunate, triquetrum and pisiform in the proximal row, next to the forearm; trapezium, trapezoid, capitate and hamate in the distal row, next to the palm. Each list runs from the thumb side to the little-finger side.
Is there a carpals unlabeled sheet to print?
Yes. The blank sheet shows all three drawings with numbered rings: 1 to 11 on the bones, 12 to 16 on the joints and 17 to 22 on the cut across the carpal tunnel, with a line for each name.
What passes through the carpal tunnel?
Nine tendons and the median nerve: four tendons of flexor digitorum superficialis, four of flexor digitorum profundus and the one tendon of flexor pollicis longus.
Which carpal bones form the wrist joint?
The scaphoid and the lunate meet the end of the radius. The triquetrum faces a pad of fibrocartilage, the articular disc, so the ulna does not touch a carpal bone.