arithmetic

American  

[uh-rith-muh-tik, ar-ith-met-ik] / əˈrɪθ mə tɪk, ˌær ɪθˈmɛt ɪk /

noun

arithmetics plural

1. the method or process of computation with figures: the most elementary branch of mathematics.

2. Also called theoretical arithmetic.  Also called higher arithmetic,.  the theory of numbers; the study of the divisibility of whole numbers, the remainders after division, etc.

3. a book on this subject.

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adjective

1. Also arithmetical. of or relating to arithmetic.

arithmetic British  

/ əˈrɪθmətɪk /

noun

1. the branch of mathematics concerned with numerical calculations, such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division

2. one or more calculations involving numerical operations

3. knowledge of or skill in using arithmetic

   his arithmetic is good

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adjective

1. of, relating to, or using arithmetic

arithmetic Scientific  

/ ə-rĭth′mĭ-tĭk /

1. The mathematics of integers, rational numbers, real numbers, or complex numbers under the operations of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• arithmetician
  noun
• nonarithmetic
  adjective
• nonarithmetical
  adjective
• unarithmetical
  adjective
• arithmetically
  adverb
• nonarithmetically
  adverb
• unarithmetically
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• arithmetics
  plural

Etymology

Origin of arithmetic

1200–50; < Latin arithmētica, feminine singular of arithmēticus < Greek arithmētikḗ ( téchnē ) (art, skill) of numbers, equivalent to arithmé ( ein ) to reckon + -t ( o )- verbal adjective + -ikḗ -ic; replacing Middle English arsmet ( r ) ike < Old French arismetique < Medieval Latin arismētica, with s for Late Greek th

Explanation

Arithmetic is another word for math, specifically the areas of math having to do with numbers and calculating. If you're good at adding, subtracting, dividing, and multiplying, then you're good at arithmetic, which is a big part of math. Arithmetic has to do with doing calculations. To answer most math problems, including almost all word problems, you need arithmetic. The most basic arithmetic is 2 plus 2, but as anyone who's ever taken algebra can tell you, it can get a lot more complicated than that.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

arithmetic arithmetics

It is being forced to, the way a homeowner under water on his mortgage does not so much decide to sell as get evicted by the arithmetic.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026

Makers of personal computers face the same arithmetic, though not all are equally exposed.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 8, 2026

I was surprised to see that it made a simple arithmetic error early on, keeping more of my portfolio in cash than I had requested.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 5, 2026

That is for 8 May and beyond, when the votes have been counted and the parliamentary arithmetic reveals who is best placed to take charge of the Scottish government for the next five years.

From BBC ● May 1, 2026

They were taught piano, penmanship, geography, and arithmetic, the world distilled into strange new symbols.

From "Killers of the Flower Moon" by David Grann

The arithmetics of distance and time were not cheering either.

From Time Magazine Archive

There were also a few arithmetics and algebras, a historical novel or two, and the inevitable copy of Uncle Tom's Cabin, whose pages I had freely moistened with my tears.

From The Story of a Pioneer by Shaw, Anna Howard

He published several arithmetics, dedicating them to his patron, Colbert.

From A Budget of Paradoxes, Volume I by Smith, David Eugene

There the interruption of commerce with the North compelled a resort to home production in school-book literature, and intensity of feeling upon sectional questions found frequent expression in spelling-books and arithmetics.

From Noah Webster American Men of Letters by Scudder, Horace E.

We have farm ballads and farm arithmetics, but as yet no one has written for us a book on farm pedagogy.

From Reveries of a Schoolmaster by Pearson, Francis B.

Related Words

• calculation
• computation