as in deducting
to take away (an amount or number) from a total
if you subtract 10 from 23, you get 13 you can subtract the time you spent daydreaming from your total homework time
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Recent Examples of subtracting
Shares are priced at less than the figure arrived at when subtracting the company’s total liabilities from its total assets.
—
John Navin, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2025
Boston may not be completely done subtracting pieces, either.
—Matthew Schmidt, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 Aug. 2025
Find your max heart rate by subtracting your age from 220.
—Jakob Roze, Health, 25 Aug. 2025
Two Track estimates the pop-top kit adds roughly 100 lb (45 kg) of weight to the Wrangler Unlimited's total after subtracting the weight of the original roof components that are replaced in the process.
—New Atlas, 19 Aug. 2025
Such data revisions, either adding or subtracting jobs, are not uncommon.
—Max Zahn, ABC News, 12 Aug. 2025
In 2020, a Pew Research Center analysis found that subtracting undocumented immigrants from that year’s census count would lead to Texas, California, and Florida each losing a congressional seat.
—Solcyré Burga, Time, 7 Aug. 2025
John Navin, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2025
Boston may not be completely done subtracting pieces, either.
—Matthew Schmidt, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 Aug. 2025
Find your max heart rate by subtracting your age from 220.
—Jakob Roze, Health, 25 Aug. 2025
Two Track estimates the pop-top kit adds roughly 100 lb (45 kg) of weight to the Wrangler Unlimited's total after subtracting the weight of the original roof components that are replaced in the process.
—New Atlas, 19 Aug. 2025
Such data revisions, either adding or subtracting jobs, are not uncommon.
—Max Zahn, ABC News, 12 Aug. 2025
In 2020, a Pew Research Center analysis found that subtracting undocumented immigrants from that year’s census count would lead to Texas, California, and Florida each losing a congressional seat.
—Solcyré Burga, Time, 7 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for subtracting
deducting
Verb
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The order not only stripped workers of union protections but also stopped them from automatically deducting union dues from their paychecks.—
Chris Isidore,
CNN Money,
1 Sep. 2025
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Instead of business owners deducting state income tax on their individual return (where it’s capped), the entity pays the tax directly.—
Robert Green,
Forbes.com,
30 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Subtracting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/subtracting. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
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