Lacrimal glandThe gland that makes tears. It is about the size and shape of an almond and sits in the upper, outer part of the orbit.
Excretory ductsShort ducts that carry tears from the gland to the eye's surface. The tears arrive under the upper eyelid. Blinking spreads the tears across the eye.
Where tears drain 5
Lacrimal lakeThe small space at the inner corner of the eye. Tears gather here after crossing the eye.
Lacrimal punctaTwo tiny openings near the inner corner, one on each eyelid's edge. Tears leave the surface of the eye through them.
Lacrimal canaliculiTwo small channels, one in each eyelid. Each starts at a punctum, runs up or down a short way, then turns toward the nose and ends in the lacrimal sac.
Lacrimal sacThe wide upper end of the nasolacrimal duct. It lies in a groove formed by the lacrimal bone and the maxilla.
Nasolacrimal ductThe tube that carries tears down from the lacrimal sac. It leads into the nasal cavity. It is also called the tear duct.
Inside the nose 3
Inferior nasal conchaA curved plate of bone. It lies on the lower side wall of the nasal cavity. The nasolacrimal duct opens just under it.
Inferior nasal meatusThe passage under the inferior nasal concha. The nasolacrimal duct empties into it.
Nasal cavityThe space inside the nose. Tears that are not needed end up here, which is why the nose runs when the eyes water.
How this list was compiled: Every name and detail line was checked on 2026-09-30 against OpenStax Anatomy and Physiology 2e, sections 14.1 Sensory Perception and 7.2 The Skull, https://openstax.org/books/anatomy-and-physiology-2e/pages/14-1-sensory-perception; TeachMeAnatomy, The Lacrimal Gland, https://teachmeanatomy.info/head/organs/eye/lacrimal-gland/; Kenhub, Lacrimal apparatus, https://www.kenhub.com/en/library/anatomy/lacrimal-apparatus; Gray, Anatomy of the Human Body, 1918, https://archive.org/details/anatomyofhumanbo00grayrich (the lacrimal apparatus); and Wikipedia: Lacrimal apparatus, Lacrimal punctum, Lacrimal canaliculi, Lacrimal sac, Nasolacrimal duct. 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 lacrimal apparatus diagram of the right eye, with the nose cut open. It is the drawing behind the homework line correctly label the structures associated with the lacrimal apparatus: the rings are numbered in the order a tear flows.
Read the full guide
Made above the eye
The lacrimal gland sits above the outer corner of the eye. Its excretory ducts open under the upper eyelid, and each blink spreads the tears across the eye toward the inner corner.
Drained into the nose
At the inner corner the tears gather in the lacrimal lake and leave through two tiny openings, the puncta. A canaliculus leads from each one to the lacrimal sac, and the nasolacrimal duct carries them down to the space under the inferior nasal concha.
Follow the numbers: gland, ducts, lake, puncta, canaliculi, sac, nasolacrimal duct, nose.
The excretory ducts are above the outer corner of the eye; the puncta and canaliculi are at the inner corner.
Punctum and canaliculus are the words for one; puncta and canaliculi are the plurals.
Questions and answers
What structures make up the lacrimal apparatus?
The lacrimal gland and its excretory ducts, which make tears and carry them to the eye, and the puncta, lacrimal canaliculi, lacrimal sac and nasolacrimal duct, which drain them into the nose.
What path do tears take?
From the lacrimal gland through its ducts onto the eye, across the eye to the inner corner, into the two puncta, along the canaliculi to the lacrimal sac, then down the nasolacrimal duct into the nasal cavity.
Where does the nasolacrimal duct open?
Into the inferior nasal meatus, the passage under the inferior nasal concha on the side wall of the nasal cavity.
Why does the nose run when you cry?
Tears drain through the nasolacrimal duct into the nasal cavity. When the eyes make many tears at once, the extra fluid in the nose runs out.