Which statement accurately defines medial and lateral with respect to the body's centerline?

• A. Medial is closer to the centerline.
• B. Medial is farther from the centerline.
• C. Lateral is closer to the centerline.
• D. Lateral is below the centerline.

Answer: (A)

Medial means toward the midline of the body, while lateral means away from that midline. The centerline is the imaginary vertical line that runs down the middle of the body.

So the statement that medial is closer to the centerline is correct because it uses the defining idea of medial—being toward the midline. For example, your nose is closer to the centerline than your ears, and the inner thigh is closer to the midline than the outer thigh.

The other options don’t fit because they either reverse the relationship (medial farther from the centerline, lateral closer to the centerline) or mix up direction with vertical location (lateral being below the centerline).