To subtract means to take one number away from another to find the difference. When you subtract 3 from 10, you end up with 7. If you have 15 cookies and eat 4 of them, you've subtracted 4 from 15, leaving you with 11 cookies.

Subtraction is one of the four basic operations in mathematics, along with addition, multiplication, and division. The symbol for subtraction is the minus sign: −. In the problem 20 − 8 = 12, we say “twenty minus eight equals twelve.”

You subtract all the time without thinking about it. When you're saving money for something expensive and spend some of your savings, you subtract that amount to see how much you have left. When a basketball team scores 47 points and plays a team that scores 52 points, you subtract to find they lost by 5 points.

The word can also mean to remove or take away in a broader sense. A teacher might subtract points from your grade for late work. Taking away ingredients from a recipe subtracts from its flavor. When something is subtracted, it's been removed or reduced, leaving less than what you started with.