Digestive System Questions Key NAME: ___________

Use the word bank to complete the diagram of the digestive system.
Using the word blank below, match the description given with the structures that it describes. Choices may be used
more than once.

Anus Microvillia Salivary Glands Appendix

Mouth (Oral Canal) Small Intestines Esophagus Pancreas
Stomach Gallbladder Pharynx Tongue
Large Intestine (Colon) Rectum Villi Liver

1. Stores bile until it is secreted. Gallbladder

2. Fingerlike extensions in the intestinal wall that increase surface area. Villi

3. Two anatomical regions where mechanical digestion occurs. Mouth and stomach (peristalsis)

4. Organ that mixes food in the mouth. Tongue

5. Common passage for food and air. Pharynx

6. Literally a food chute; it has no digestive or absorptive role. Esophagus

7. Projections of the plasma membrane of a cell that increase the cell’s surface area. Microvilli

8. Produces a juice that neutralizes stomach acid and contains digestive enzymes. Pancreas

9. Organ responsible for absorption of most nutrients. Small Intestine

10. Organ primarily involved in water absorption and feces formation. Large Intestine

11. Blind sac hanging from the initial part of the colon. Appendix

12. Organ in which protein digestion begins. Stomach

13. Organ into which the stomach empties. Small Intestine

14. Organ that receives pancreatic juice and bile. Small Intestine

15. Opening through which feces are expelled from the body. Anus

16. Produces bile. Liver

17. Produce enzymes that begin carbohydrate digestion. Salivary Glands

18. Stores feces until they are excreted. Rectum

Short Response Questions:
19. What is the alimentary canal?
20. Explain what peristalsis is.
21. Name 4 organs that are accessory glands or organs in the digestive system.
22. Explain the difference between mechanical digestion and chemical digestion.
23. Explain how the small intestines are well adapted for absorption.

24. Which of the following is NOT an accessory structure of the digestive system?
A. Liver.
B. Gallbladder.
C. Pancreas.
D. Spleen.
E. None of above.

25. Salivary amylase secreted into the oral cavity starts the digestion of
A. Proteins.
B. Starch.
C. Lipids.
D. Amino acids.
E. All of above.

26. Parasympathetic impulses to the gastrointestinal tract generally inhibit peristalsis and
secretions while impulses from the sympathetic division increase the rate of digestion.
A. True.
B. False.

27. What mouth part helps to mix food with saliva, moves food toward the pharynx for
swallowing, and houses taste receptor cells?
A. Lips.
B. Palate.
C. Tongue.
D. Cheeks.
E. All of above.

28. What initiates the swallowing reflex?

A. Fear of choking on food.
B. The tongue rolling the bolus to the pharynx.
C. Sensory receptors detecting the bolus in the pharynx
D. Secretion of saliva at the thought of food.

29. What is the primary purpose of the liver in aiding digestion?

A. Produces digestive enzymes.
B. Produces alkaline solution to neutralize stomach acidity.
C. Produces bile to emulsify fats in the small intestine.
D. Produces substances that aid the large intestine in water absorption.
E. None of above.

30. The enzyme salivary amylase begins to digest which molecules?

A. Proteins.
B. Carbohydrates.
C. Lipids.
D. Nucleic acids.

31. What does the pancreatic duct directly join to?

A. Jejunum.
B. Liver.
C. Ileum.
D. Duodenum.

32. How long can it take for food to completely pass through the large intestine?
A. 10 minutes
B. 1 hour
C. 5 hours
D. 20 hours

33. What is the largest gland in the body?

A. Liver.
B. Gallbladder.
C. Pancreas.
D. Large intestine.