Which blood vessel carries oxygenated blood from the lungs to the heart?

• A. Aorta
• B. Pulmonary veins
• C. Pulmonary artery
• D. Superior vena cava

Answer: (B)

Understanding how oxygenated blood returns from the lungs to the heart is key here. After blood picks up oxygen in the lungs, it travels back to the heart through the pulmonary veins. These vessels deliver oxygen-rich blood into the left atrium, from which it moves to the left ventricle and then out to the body via the aorta. The aorta itself carries oxygenated blood away from the heart to tissues, not from the lungs to the heart. The pulmonary artery, in contrast, carries blood from the right ventricle to the lungs and is deoxygenated. The superior vena cava brings deoxygenated blood from the upper body to the right atrium. So, the vessels that specifically return oxygenated blood from the lungs to the heart are the pulmonary veins.