Subtraction's one of the four basic arithmetic operations; it's the inverse of addition, meaning that if we start with any number and add any number and then subtract the same number we added, we return to the number we started with. Subtraction's denoted by a minus sign in infix notation. The traditional names for the parts of the formula » c − b = a are minuend (c) − subtrahend (b) = difference (a). The words "minuend" and "subtrahend" are uncommon in modern usage. Instead we say… (More on Subtract)