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subtract

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Subtract is to take away something or to reduce something by a set amount.

(verb)

When you have the money you owe your boss taken out of your paycheck, this is an example of subtract.
When you do a math problem where you start with the number five and you take away two to arrive at the number three, this is an example of subtract.

See subtract in Webster's New World College Dictionary

transitive verb, intransitive verb

to take away (a part from a whole)
to take away or deduct (one number or quantity from another)

Origin: < L subtractus, pp. of subtrahere, to draw away underneath, subtract < sub-, sub- + trahere, to draw

Related Forms:

subtracter noun

See subtract in American Heritage Dictionary 4

verb sub·tract·ed, sub·tract·ing, sub·tracts

verb, transitive

To take away; deduct.

verb, intransitive

To perform the arithmetic operation of subtraction.

Origin:

Origin: Latin subtrahere, subtract-

Origin: : sub-, sub-

Origin: + trahere, to draw

Related Forms:

sub·tractˈer noun

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