Anatomy of the Tongue
Anatomy of the Tongue
- Last updated November 23, 2025
✅ Objectives
By the end of these revision notes, you should be able to:
- Know the muscles of the tongue
- Discuss the innervation of the tongue
- Discuss the vasculature and lymphatic drainage of the tongue
- Understand the basics of embryological development of the tongue
Muscles
The first aspect of the anatomy of the tongue that should be considered are the muscles of the tongue. These are divided in to two types: intrinsic muscles and extrinsic muscles.
Intrinsic muscles
Intrinsic muscles originate within and attach to structures within the tongue. There are four paired sets of muscles, named based on their direction of travel of the fibres:
- Transverse
- Vertical
- Superior longitudinal
- Inferior longitudinal
Extrinsic muscles
The extrinsic muscles originate from structures outside the tongue and insert in to it. There are also four extrinsic muscles outlined below.
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