Inpatient Obstetric Nurse (NCC) Practice Exam 2025 – Comprehensive All-in-One Guide for Exam Success!

The term that accurately describes the engagement of the fetal head into the maternal pelvis is known as "engagement." Engagement occurs when the widest part of the fetal head, typically the biparietal diameter, descends into the pelvic inlet and settles at the level of the ischial spines, marking the beginning of the labor process.

While "lightening or dropping" refers to the phenomenon when the fetus moves deeper into the pelvis and the mother may notice a relief of pressure in the upper abdomen, it is not a technical term for the engagement itself. Instead, lightening is often experienced in the weeks or days leading up to labor and signifies that the fetus has descended but does not specifically refer to the engagement process.

Descent describes the general movement of the fetus downward through the birth canal during labor but does not indicate the specific moment of the head's engagement into the pelvis. A transverse lie refers to a fetal position where the fetus is positioned sideways in the uterus, which is unrelated to the process of engagement.

Therefore, the most precise term for the engagement of the fetal head into the maternal pelvis is indeed "engagement."