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Human Body Study

Ligaments

Tough bands of dense connective tissue that connect bone to bone.

The skeleton A stylised whole-body skeleton showing the axial portion (skull, spine, ribs, sternum) and the appendicular portion (girdles and limbs). A separate joint-cross-section inset gathers the tissue-level subsystems — bone tissue, cartilage and ligaments — as they meet at a joint. Each label links to the article for that part. joint cross-section Axial skeleton Appendicular skeleton Joints Bone tissue Cartilage Ligaments The skeleton — axial vs appendicular bones, with a joint cross-section showing bone, cartilage and ligaments.

What they do

Section titled “What they do”
  • Hold joints together and keep the bones properly aligned.
  • Limit movement to safe directions and ranges.
  • Contribute to the sense of joint position (proprioception).

Key idea

Section titled “Key idea”

Ligaments are strong but only slightly elastic; once overstretched or torn (a sprain), they heal slowly because their blood supply is poor. They should not be confused with tendons, which connect muscle to bone.