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restar

to subtract

verb rreh-STAHR Less Common
Numbers & Measures Mathematics

Origin: From Latin restare ('to remain'), reanalysed in Spanish arithmetic.

Also means

to diminish, to detract

Usage Note

Restar is the standard arithmetic term for subtraction — cinco menos tres resta dos ('five minus three leaves two'). Its figurative use — esto no resta importancia al problema ('this does not detract from the importance of the problem') — is common in formal writing. The related noun is la resta or la sustracción. It is the opposite of sumar ('to add').

Examples

"Si restas tres a diez, obtienes siete."

Natural Translation

If you subtract three from ten, you get seven.

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