Question:easy
The chorda tympani is a content of which part of the ear?
The chorda tympani is a content of which part of the ear?
Show Hint
It crosses the tympanic cavity between malleus and incus.
Updated On: Jun 24, 2026
- Middle ear
- Inner ear
- External auditory canal
- None of the above
Show Solution
The Correct Option is A
Solution and Explanation
Step 1: Split the ear into its three compartments - external (pinna and canal), middle (tympanic cavity), and inner (labyrinth).
Step 2: List what the tympanic cavity holds: malleus, incus and stapes; the tensor tympani and stapedius muscles; the tympanic nerve plexus; and the chorda tympani as it cuts across the cavity.
Step 3: Trace the chorda tympani - a facial nerve branch carrying taste and secretomotor fibres that passes through the middle ear between the malleus handle and the long process of the incus before exiting to reach the lingual nerve.
Step 4: Its passage through the tympanic cavity places it firmly among middle ear contents, ruling out the inner ear and external canal.
\[\boxed{\text{Middle ear (tympanic cavity)}}\]
Step 2: List what the tympanic cavity holds: malleus, incus and stapes; the tensor tympani and stapedius muscles; the tympanic nerve plexus; and the chorda tympani as it cuts across the cavity.
Step 3: Trace the chorda tympani - a facial nerve branch carrying taste and secretomotor fibres that passes through the middle ear between the malleus handle and the long process of the incus before exiting to reach the lingual nerve.
Step 4: Its passage through the tympanic cavity places it firmly among middle ear contents, ruling out the inner ear and external canal.
\[\boxed{\text{Middle ear (tympanic cavity)}}\]
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