The joints of the human body in 3D

A joint is where two or more bones meet. Most freely moving joints are synovial joints, with fluid inside a joint capsule, and by the shape of their surfaces they are grouped as ball-and-socket, hinge, pivot, ellipsoid (condyloid), saddle and plane joints. BAHI BODY lights up the bones of 16 major joints on its 3D skeleton.

Frequently asked questions

How are bones joined at a joint?

By the tissue that joins the bones, joints are fibrous, cartilaginous or synovial. The sutures between skull bones are fibrous joints, the vertebral bodies joined by intervertebral discs are cartilaginous joints, and freely moving joints such as the shoulder and knee are synovial joints.

What is the largest joint in the body?

The knee joint is the largest joint in the body. It is where three bones meet: the femur, the tibia and the patella.

Which joint has the widest range of movement?

The shoulder joint has the widest range of movement. The socket of the scapula is shallow and the head of the humerus is large, so the arm can move in many directions.

Major joints

Shoulder joint: It is a ball-and-socket joint: the rounded head of the humerus sits in the socket of the scapula and can move in many directions.
Acromioclavicular joint: It is a plane joint: the two flat surfaces only glide a little against each other.
Elbow joint: Between the humerus and ulna it is a hinge joint, moving in one plane like a door hinge; the proximal radioulnar joint between the radius and ulna is a pivot joint.
Radioulnar joints: Both are pivot joints, turning around an axis.
Wrist joint: It is an ellipsoid (condyloid) joint: an oval convex surface fits into an oval hollow, allowing movement in two planes but no rotation on its own axis.
Thumb carpometacarpal joint: It is a saddle joint: both joint surfaces curve like a saddle, crossing each other, so it moves in two planes.
Hip joint: It is a ball-and-socket joint: the ball-shaped head of the femur sits deep in the acetabulum of the hip bone.
Sacroiliac joint: It combines a synovial joint at the front with a fibrous connection of ligaments behind.
Knee joint: It works mainly as a hinge joint that bends and straightens, but it can rotate slightly when bent.
Ankle joint: It is a hinge joint, moving in one plane: the foot tips up and down.
Subtalar joint: It is a synovial joint in which the two bones glide and turn on each other around an oblique axis.
Temporomandibular joint: It is a synovial joint that combines a hinge-like opening and closing movement with a forward and backward glide.
Atlanto-occipital joint: It is a pair of ellipsoid (condyloid) joints, one on each side.
Atlanto-axial joint: The central joint around the dens is a pivot joint, and the pair at the sides are plane joints.
Intervertebral joints: The disc joints at the front are cartilaginous joints; the facet joints at the back are synovial plane joints.
Costovertebral joints: Both are synovial plane joints.

Skeleton

The whole skeleton