Where the ethmoid sits in the skeleton
The ethmoid is a light bone between the eye sockets, above the nasal cavity. It forms part of the roof and walls of the nose, and the olfactory nerves pass through its small holes. It includes the perforated cribriform plate, a perpendicular plate that forms the upper nasal septum, and the superior and middle nasal conchae. Inside are clusters of small air cells, the ethmoid sinuses.
Frequently asked questions
Which part of the skeleton is the ethmoid in?
The ethmoid is one of the bones of the skull and hyoid. This group covers the bones that enclose the brain, the bones that frame the face, and the hyoid at the front of the neck.
How many bones are in the skull?
The skull has 22 bones: eight cranial bones that enclose the brain and fourteen facial bones that frame the face. The hyoid in the front of the neck is a separate bone that forms no joint with any other bone.
Is there one ethmoid or a pair?
There is just one ethmoid, on the midline of the body.
Are all three nasal conchae separate bones?
No. The superior and middle conchae are parts of the ethmoid; only the inferior nasal concha is a separate bone.
Other bones of the skull and hyoid
- Frontal bone
- Parietal bone
- Temporal bone
- Occipital bone
- Sphenoid bone
- Zygomatic bone
- Maxilla
- Mandible
- Nasal bone
- Lacrimal bone
- Palatine bone
- Vomer
- Inferior nasal concha
- Hyoid bone
Bone counts
By region
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