metacarpal bone vs metacarpal

metacarpal bone and metacarpal both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
metacarpal bone	Yes	No	No	No
metacarpal	Yes	Yes	No	No

As nouns, metacarpal bone and metacarpal are synonyms defined as:

metacarpal bone and metacarpal: any bone of the hand between the wrist and fingers

metacarpal bone (noun)	metacarpal (noun)
any bone of the hand between the wrist and fingers	any bone of the hand between the wrist and fingers

metacarpal bone (adjective)	metacarpal (adjective)
	of or relating to the metacarpus