Which muscle originates on the posterior sacrum and ilium and inserts just distal to the greater trochanter?

Which muscle originates on the posterior sacrum and ilium and inserts just distal to the greater trochanter?

• A. Gluteus Medius
• B. Piriformis
• C. Tensor Fasciae Latae
• D. Gluteus Maximus

Answer: (D)

Understanding where a muscle starts and where it ends helps identify it. The description points to a muscle that begins on the back side of the pelvis (posterior sacrum and ilium) and attaches on the femur just below the greater trochanter. That pattern fits the gluteus maximus, whose origins include the posterior ilium and the posterior sacrum (and coccyx) and whose insertion is into the gluteal tuberosity of the femur and into the iliotibial tract just distal to the greater trochanter. This placement also aligns with its role as a strong hip extensor. The other muscles listed originate from different locations (for example, a lateral ilium with insertion on the greater trochanter, or an anterior sacrum with insertion on the greater trochanter, or origins on the iliac crest/ASIS with IT band insertion), so they don’t match both the origin and the insertion described.

Understanding where a muscle starts and where it ends helps identify it. The description points to a muscle that begins on the back side of the pelvis (posterior sacrum and ilium) and attaches on the femur just below the greater trochanter. That pattern fits the gluteus maximus, whose origins include the posterior ilium and the posterior sacrum (and coccyx) and whose insertion is into the gluteal tuberosity of the femur and into the iliotibial tract just distal to the greater trochanter. This placement also aligns with its role as a strong hip extensor. The other muscles listed originate from different locations (for example, a lateral ilium with insertion on the greater trochanter, or an anterior sacrum with insertion on the greater trochanter, or origins on the iliac crest/ASIS with IT band insertion), so they don’t match both the origin and the insertion described.