subtract

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

(verb)

  1. When you have the money you owe your boss taken out of your paycheck, this is an example of subtract.
  2. 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.

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See subtract in Webster's New World College Dictionary

transitive verb, intransitive verb

  1. to take away (a part from a whole)
  2. 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:

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

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Related Forms:

  • sub·tractˈer noun

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