# Which Cranial Nerve Controls the Neck and Shoulder Muscles?

> The motor nerve controlling neck and shoulder muscles is the accessory nerve, the eleventh cranial nerve — not the seventh cranial nerve. Texas barber exam answer.

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Last updated: 2026-08-11

**The answer is the accessory nerve — the eleventh cranial nerve.**

It's easy to mix this one up with the seventh cranial nerve (the facial nerve), but that one's job is completely different — it drives the muscles behind facial expression, like around the mouth and eyes, not the neck and shoulders. The trifacial (fifth cranial) nerve is different again, handling sensation across the face rather than neck/shoulder motor control.

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