subtract

American  

[suhb-trakt] / səbˈtrækt /

verb (used with object)

• subtracts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• subtracted,
  past participle,  past
• subtracting
  present participle

1. to withdraw or take away, as a part from a whole.

   Antonyms:

   add

2. Mathematics. to take (one number or quantity) from another; deduct.

   Antonyms:

   add

---

verb (used without object)

• subtracts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• subtracted,
  past participle,  past
• subtracting
  present participle

1. to take away something or a part, as from a whole.

   Antonyms:

   add

subtract British  

/ səbˈtrækt /

verb

1. to calculate the difference between (two numbers or quantities) by subtraction

2. to remove (a part of a thing, quantity, etc) from the whole

---

Usage

What does subtract mean? Subtract means to take something away, usually as in taking a piece out of a whole. In math, subtract means to perform subtraction, the operation in which you find difference between two numbers or quantities. You can subtract one thing from another, as in We need to subtract the cost of labor from our total profits. You can also subtract something without mentioning what you’re subtracting it from, as in If you subtract the busy traffic, my day wasn’t that bad. In other words, when you consider everything in my day, except for the traffic it wasn’t a bad day. For the most part, subtract usually refers to taking a small piece away from a bigger whole. However, subtracting can potentially result in negative amounts or debts when you’re subtracting numbers. When you first learned subtraction, your teacher might have said that when we subtract, we are “taking away” one number from another. For example, if you subtract 3 from 5, you take away 3 from 5, which leaves you with 2. Example: I need to remember to subtract my electric bill from my monthly budget.

Synonym Usage

Subtract, deduct express diminution in sum or quantity. To subtract suggests taking a part from a whole or a smaller from a larger: to subtract the tax from one's salary. To deduct is to take away an amount or quantity from an aggregate or total so as to lessen or lower it: to deduct a discount. Subtract is both transitive and intransitive, and has general or figurative uses; deduct is always transitive and usually concrete and practical in application.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• subtracter
  noun
• unsubtracted
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• subtracting
  present
• subtracted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• subtract
  simple
• subtracts
  simple
• have subtracted
  perfect
• has subtracted
  perfect
• am subtracting
  progressive
• are subtracting
  progressive
• is subtracting
  progressive
• have been subtracting
  perfect progressive
• has been subtracting
  perfect progressive

Past

• subtracted
  simple
• had subtracted
  perfect
• was subtracting
  progressive
• were subtracting
  progressive
• had been subtracting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will subtract
  simple
• will have subtracted
  perfect
• will be subtracting
  progressive
• will have been subtracting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of subtract

First recorded in 1530–40; from Latin subtractus (past participle of subtrahere “to draw away from underneath”), equivalent to sub- sub- + trac- (past participle stem of trahere “to draw”) + -tus past participle suffix

Explanation

In math, when you subtract, you take one number away from another. If you subtract four from ten, you're left with six. You can also use subtract to mean "take away" in a more general sense, as in "If you subtract some of the salt from the recipe, the pasta will be healthier." When you're doing math, you know you're supposed to subtract if you see a minus sign. Subtracting gives you the difference between numbers, and you can see this in a real way when you subtract actual objects instead of numbers. If you have a dozen cupcakes and subtract ten of them, you have only two cupcakes left. The Latin root of subtract is subtrahere, "take away or draw off."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

subtract subtracts subtracted subtracting

Businesses pay a refundable tax on raw materials, collect a tax from customers, subtract the refundable portion, then pay an adjusted VAT: What a pain.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026

Then subtract your guaranteed income, such as Social Security and other reliable income sources.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 11, 2026

But none of this should subtract from the bigger takeaway.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026

To calculate it the Fed way, take the stock market’s forward earnings yield and subtract the real, or after-inflation, 10-year Treasury yield.

From Barron's ● May 14, 2026

She learned household accounting—how to add and subtract bills for soap, candles, and flour.

From "The Girl Who Drew Butterflies: How Maria Merian's Art Changed Science" by Joyce Sidman

For starters, the policy rate is currently at the lower end of the estimated growth range for neutral, a level that neither stimulates or subtracts from growth.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 18, 2026

“The Accountant 2” subtracts everything that worked about the 2016 original, a marvelous romp that starred Ben Affleck as Christian Wolff, a neurodivergent numbers geek who freelances as an auditor and assassin.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 24, 2025

Each flight subtracts from the possibility of a bright future for children who now munch on s’mores with stars in their eyes.

From Seattle Times ● Nov. 10, 2023

Terence Nicholson, the former manager of the gallery and a martial-arts adept, subtracts the pop-culture element with a shadowy video of real kung fu moves.

From Washington Post ● Mar. 31, 2023

Still, if one subtracts all the superstitious elements from the subject, there’s something appealing about the small residue that remains.

From "Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences" by John Allen Paulos

Bauermeister filed a brief a week ago arguing that the full amount of the settlement paid by Campbell Hall should be subtracted from any award the jury decides Scott must pay to Dylan.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026

Piper Sandler’s analysts estimated that rising earnings contributed about 18.5 percentage points to that return, while a shrinking price-to-earnings multiple subtracted nearly 8 percentage points.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 14, 2026

Abbott secretly subtracted a hidden value from measurements involving some of the experimental masses.

From Science Daily ● May 18, 2026

Oil market analysts had widely expected the increase of 188,000 barrels, similar to the 206,000-barrel daily increases OPEC+ announced in both March and April when the portion allotted to the UAE was subtracted.

From Barron's ● May 3, 2026

He automatically subtracted ten miles an hour from the speed whenever he discussed the matter with Mother.

From "Cheaper by the Dozen" by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey

Counting gains in volatile equities when they go up while subtracting everyday operating costs isn’t analysis.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

Gross profit is revenue without subtracting the cost of production expenses.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 17, 2026

Then it's the net goal score - taking the goals in favour, and subtracting the goals against.

From BBC ● May 26, 2026

For most people, it comes down to either taking an extended break, like a sabbatical; somehow subtracting duties from their current role; or transitioning to a less stressful position.

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 4, 2026

First Momma started writing in a notebook and adding things up and subtracting things, then Dad and Joey and Rufus and me started driving all over Flint buying things for the Brown Bomber.

From "The Watsons Go to Birmingham" by Christopher Paul Curtis

Related Words

• deduct
• withhold