as in deduction
the act or an instance of taking away from a total
the restaurant may not have raised the price, but there's definitely been a subtraction in the number of fries in a side order
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Recent Examples of subtraction
Those three subtractions from the Texas roster happened over the first three days of the portal's 15-day window.
—
Danny Davis, Austin American Statesman, 10 Apr. 2026
Each player or team who makes an addition or subtraction receives an X post, sometimes highlighting multiple follows and unfollows.
—Joshua Kloke, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2026
In an introduction to the Archimedes standards, the association contrasts a Common Core second grade standard on addition and subtraction that takes 67 words to explain with Archimedes’ 24-word version.
—Steven Yoder, States Newsroom, 20 Mar. 2026
In a textbook case of addition by subtraction, one of Iger’s biggest sports coups was entirely accidental.
—Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 18 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for subtraction
Danny Davis, Austin American Statesman, 10 Apr. 2026
Each player or team who makes an addition or subtraction receives an X post, sometimes highlighting multiple follows and unfollows.
—Joshua Kloke, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2026
In an introduction to the Archimedes standards, the association contrasts a Common Core second grade standard on addition and subtraction that takes 67 words to explain with Archimedes’ 24-word version.
—Steven Yoder, States Newsroom, 20 Mar. 2026
In a textbook case of addition by subtraction, one of Iger’s biggest sports coups was entirely accidental.
—Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 18 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for subtraction
Recent Examples of Synonyms for subtraction
Noun
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Trim or eliminate tariffs, protect our veterans and disabled people’s finances and security, increase Social Security to reflect higher prices, more tax deductions.—
Lucas Robinson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
7 May 2026
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Employee paycheck information is available in detail by category, such as deductions, hours, earnings, and taxes, or in summary.—
Kathy Yakal,
PC Magazine,
6 May 2026
Noun
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This represents a 500°C, or 900°F, reduction compared to existing methods.—
Aman Tripathi,
Interesting Engineering,
3 May 2026
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Most states have some sort of incentive in place to benefit EV buyers, including tax credits or rebates, or utility rate reductions, according to a 2023 report from the National Conference of State Legislators, a bipartisan nonprofit group for state legislators and their staff.—
Sarah Agostino,
CNBC,
3 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Subtraction.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/subtraction. Accessed 10 May. 2026.
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