anteriorly

Anteriorly is an adverb used to indicate placement toward the front or forward surface of an object or organism. In anatomy and medicine, it describes a position relative to a reference point, such as the midline or another structure. For example, the sternum is anterior to the heart, and the stomach lies anterior to the pancreas. The term derives from Latin anterior, meaning "before" or "front," with the adverbial suffix -ly forming anteriorly.

In human anatomy, anterior denotes toward the front of the body in the standard anatomical position; in many animals that stand or move on four limbs, anterior points toward the head. The opposite direction is posterior (dorsal in some contexts). Anteriorly is widely used in clinical notes, radiology, and embryology to describe the location of lesions, implants, or developmental features, such as an anteriorly displaced fracture or an anteriorly placed catheter.

Compared with related directional terms, anterior is sometimes synonymous with ventral, especially in humans, but the two terms can have distinct usage in veterinary anatomy and embryology. In neuroanatomy, terms like cephalad, rostral, and ventral may be used in concert with anterior/posterior to describe the brain's axes. Overall, anteriorly conveys frontward orientation and is a standard, neutral descriptor across medical and scientific writing.