Movement away from the midline is called what?

Movement away from the midline is called what?

• A. Abduction
• B. Adduction
• C. Flexion
• D. Extension

Answer: (A)

Movement away from the midline is called abduction. The midline is an imaginary line that divides the body into left and right halves. When a limb moves outward away from that line—such as lifting the arm out to the side or spreading the fingers—that’s abduction. The opposite action is adduction, which brings a limb back toward the body's midline. For context, flexion and extension describe how a joint angle changes: flexion bends the joint to reduce the angle, while extension straightens it to increase the angle.

Movement away from the midline is called abduction. The midline is an imaginary line that divides the body into left and right halves. When a limb moves outward away from that line—such as lifting the arm out to the side or spreading the fingers—that’s abduction. The opposite action is adduction, which brings a limb back toward the body's midline. For context, flexion and extension describe how a joint angle changes: flexion bends the joint to reduce the angle, while extension straightens it to increase the angle.