• 12 nerves
  • Checked September 2026

Cranial Nerves Labeling Quiz

A cranial nerves game on the base of the brain: find all twelve, front to back.

Cranial Nerves Labeling Quiz

Name Date

Tap the oculomotor nerve

1 of 12

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
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Write the name of each numbered nerve.Answer key

  1. Olfactory nerve
  2. Optic nerve
  3. Oculomotor nerve
  4. Trochlear nerve
  5. Trigeminal nerve
  6. Abducens nerve
  7. Facial nerve
  8. Vestibulocochlear nerve (auditory nerve)
  9. Glossopharyngeal nerve
  10. Vagus nerve
  11. Accessory nerve (spinal accessory nerve)
  12. Hypoglossal nerve

Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry. Licence: own work.

Each numbered ring is a button. Use the arrow keys to move between them and Enter to choose. Names are read out in Study, and once a nerve is answered.

Next step Next: the parts of the brain itself

All 12 nerves on the diagram

Show the list

Under the cerebrum 2

  1. Olfactory nerve Cranial nerve I, a sensory nerve for smell. Its fibers end in the olfactory bulb, which lies under the frontal lobe with its tract running back.
  2. Optic nerve Cranial nerve II, a sensory nerve for vision. The two optic nerves meet at the optic chiasm.

From the midbrain 2

  1. Oculomotor nerve Cranial nerve III, a motor nerve. It works four of the muscles that move the eyeball, raises the upper eyelid and makes the pupil smaller.
  2. Trochlear nerve Cranial nerve IV, a motor nerve. It works one eye muscle, the superior oblique. It leaves the back of the midbrain and curves around to the front.

From the pons 4

  1. Trigeminal nerve Cranial nerve V, sensory and motor. It carries feeling from the skin of the face and works the chewing muscles.
  2. Abducens nerve Cranial nerve VI, a motor nerve. It works one eye muscle, the lateral rectus. It leaves where the pons meets the medulla.
  3. Facial nerve Cranial nerve VII, sensory and motor. It works the muscles of facial expression and carries part of the sense of taste.
  4. Vestibulocochlear nerve (auditory nerve) Cranial nerve VIII, a sensory nerve for hearing and balance. It leaves beside the facial nerve, where the pons meets the medulla.

From the medulla 4

  1. Glossopharyngeal nerve Cranial nerve IX, sensory and motor. It works muscles of the mouth and upper throat and carries part of the sense of taste.
  2. Vagus nerve Cranial nerve X, sensory and motor. It helps control the organs of the chest and the upper abdomen.
  3. Accessory nerve (spinal accessory nerve) Cranial nerve XI, a motor nerve. Part of it starts on the upper spinal cord. It works two muscles of the neck and shoulder, the sternocleidomastoid and the trapezius.
  4. Hypoglossal nerve Cranial nerve XII, a motor nerve for the muscles of the tongue. It leaves the medulla in front of the olive; nerves IX, X and XI leave behind it.

How this list was compiled: Every name and detail line was checked on 2026-09-30 against OpenStax Anatomy and Physiology 2e, section 13.4 The Peripheral Nervous System, https://openstax.org/books/anatomy-and-physiology-2e/pages/13-4-the-peripheral-nervous-system; TeachMeAnatomy, Summary of the Cranial Nerves, https://teachmeanatomy.info/head/cranial-nerves/summary/; Wikipedia: Cranial nerves, Optic chiasm; and Gray, Anatomy of the Human Body, 1918, https://archive.org/details/anatomyofhumanbo00grayrich (the accessory nerve). 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

The brain from below, with all twelve cranial nerves. Find each one where it leaves the brain. Every answer adds the number and what the nerve does, so it works as a cranial nerves and functions quiz.

Read the full guide

Front to back, I to XII

The numbers follow the order in which the nerves leave the brain, from front to back. Nerves I and II attach under the cerebrum. III and IV leave the midbrain, V to VIII the pons, and IX to XII the medulla.

Telling neighbors apart

The trigeminal is the thickest and stands alone on the side of the pons. The facial and vestibulocochlear nerves leave side by side below it. On the medulla, the hypoglossal leaves in front of the olive, and the glossopharyngeal, vagus and accessory leave behind it.

  • On Old Olympus' Towering Tops, A Finn And German Viewed Some Hops: one word for each nerve, in order.
  • Three nerves move the eye: the oculomotor, the trochlear and the abducens.
  • The trochlear nerve starts on the back of the midbrain, so it wraps around the side to reach the front.

Questions and answers

What are the 12 cranial nerves in order?

Olfactory, optic, oculomotor, trochlear, trigeminal, abducens, facial, vestibulocochlear, glossopharyngeal, vagus, accessory and hypoglossal. They are written CN I to CN XII, in Roman numerals.

Is there a cranial nerves diagram unlabeled to print?

Yes. The blank sheet shows the underside of the brain with rings 1 to 12, one for each nerve in order, and a line for each name.

Which cranial nerves are sensory only?

Three: the olfactory (I), the optic (II) and the vestibulocochlear (VIII). Five are motor only: III, IV, VI, XI and XII. The other four, V, VII, IX and X, carry both kinds of fiber.

Which cranial nerves do not come from the brainstem?

The first two. The olfactory and optic nerves attach to the cerebrum; the other ten pairs leave the midbrain, the pons or the medulla.

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