Subtraction as Difference Examples in Math

Start with the recap, study the fully worked examples, then use the practice problems to check your understanding of Subtraction as Difference.

This page combines explanation, solved examples, and follow-up practice so you can move from recognition to confident problem-solving in Math.

Concept Recap

Understanding subtraction as finding the gap or difference between two quantities, rather than just 'taking away.' This comparison model asks 'how many more?' or 'how far apart?'

How much taller is a 6-foot person than a 4-foot person? The difference is 2 feet.

Read the full concept explanation →

How to Use These Examples

  • Read the first worked example with the solution open so the structure is clear.
  • Try the practice problems before revealing each solution.
  • Use the related concepts and background knowledge badges if you feel stuck.

What to Focus On

Core idea: Difference sees subtraction as measuring how far apart two quantities are, even when nothing is taken away.

Common stuck point: The procedure for subtraction as difference is the easy part; the trap is adding the two amounts because both are present. Asking "Am I finding the gap between two amounts rather than removing one?" first is what keeps a correct-looking calculation from being attached to the wrong concept.

Sense of Study hint: Ask: Am I finding the gap between two amounts rather than removing one?

Worked Examples

Example 1

easy
Rosa has 8 grapes. Tom has 5 grapes. How many MORE grapes does Rosa have than Tom?

Answer

3 more grapes

First step

1
We want to find the difference between 8 and 5.

Full solution

  1. 2
    Write: 8−5=?8 - 5 = ?
  2. 3
    Count up from 5 to 8: 6, 7, 8 — that is 3 steps.
  3. 4
    Rosa has 3 more grapes than Tom.
Subtraction as difference compares two amounts to see how much more one has than the other. The difference between 8 and 5 is 3.

Example 2

medium
A red tower has 11 blocks. A blue tower has 6 blocks. How many fewer blocks does the blue tower have?

Example 3

easy
You have 5 stickers. Your friend has 2. How many more do you have?

Example 4

medium
You have 2 balloons. Your brother has 5. How many fewer balloons do you have?

Example 5

easy
Sam has 7 pennies. Ella has 4 pennies. How many more pennies does Sam have?

Example 6

easy
Owen counted 10 birds. Ava counted 7 birds. How many more birds did Owen count?

Example 7

medium
Emma has 5 books. Her shelf can hold 10. How many more books fit on the shelf?

Example 8

easy
Sara read 14 pages. Tom read 6 pages. How many more pages did Sara read?

Example 9

easy
A pencil is 18 cm long. A crayon is 11 cm long. How much longer is the pencil?

Example 10

hard
Theo had 20 marbles. He gave 7 to his cousin. His friend has 18 marbles. How many fewer marbles does Theo have now than his friend?

Example 11

easy
A school library has 65 fiction books and 41 nonfiction books. How many more fiction books are there?

Example 12

easy
Mia has \$36 saved. A book she wants costs \$50. How much more money does she need?

Example 13

hard
Tom saved \$63 last month. This month he saved \$45, but then he spent \$18 on a gift. How much more money did Tom save last month than what he has from this month after the gift?

Practice Problems

Try these problems on your own first, then open the solution to compare your method.

Example 1

easy
Ana has 7 stickers. Ben has 4 stickers. How many more stickers does Ana have?

Example 2

medium
Mia collected 14 seashells and Jake collected 9 seashells. What is the difference in the number of seashells they collected?

Example 3

easy
How much taller is an 88-foot wall than a 55-foot wall?

Example 4

easy
Anna has 99 stickers and Ben has 44. How many more does Anna have?

Example 5

easy
A rope is 1212 m long. You cut off 55 m. How much is left?

Example 6

easy
What is the difference between 1010 and 66?

Example 7

easy
A jar had 1515 candies; now it has 99. How many were eaten?

Example 8

easy
A pencil is 1414 cm and a crayon is 99 cm. How much longer is the pencil?

Example 9

easy
There are 77 apples and 77 oranges. What is the difference in their counts?

Example 10

easy
Maria is 1111 and her brother is 77. How many years older is Maria?

Example 11

medium
A book has 3030 pages. Sam read 1818. How many more pages must he read to finish?

Example 12

medium
A shirt costs $24\$24 and pants cost $31\$31. How much more do the pants cost?

Example 13

medium
A plant was 1313 cm and grew to 2121 cm. How much did it grow?

Example 14

medium
Town A is 2525 km away and Town B is 4040 km away along the same road. How far apart are the towns?

Example 15

medium
A thermometer rose from 12∘12^\circ to 20∘20^\circ, then fell to 15∘15^\circ. What is the net change from start?

Example 16

medium
You owe $50\$50 and pay back $32\$32. How much do you still owe?

Example 17

medium
Set up the subtraction to find how much greater 3434 is than 1212, then compute.

Example 18

medium
A tank holds 6060 L. It has 4545 L now. How many more liters to fill it?

Example 19

medium
Two ribbons are 1919 cm and 1111 cm. How much must you cut from the longer to match the shorter?

Example 20

challenge
Two numbers add to 2020 and differ by 66. Find the numbers.

Example 21

challenge
On a number line, point AA is at −3-3 and point BB is at 55. How far apart are they?

Example 22

challenge
A race leader is at km 1818; a runner is at km 1111 moving 11 km/min faster pace won't help past the finish. If the race ends at km 2020, can the runner close the 77 km gap before the finish?

Example 23

easy
You have 3 red bears. You see 1 blue bear. How many more red bears than blue?

Example 24

easy
🍎🍎🍎🍎 and 🍐🍐. How many more apples than pears?

Example 25

easy
🐱🐱🐱 and 🐶🐶🐶🐶🐶. How many fewer cats than dogs?

Example 26

medium
You see 5 ducks. You see 3 swans. How many more ducks?

Example 27

medium
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 and ⭐⭐⭐. How many more gold stars than silver?

Example 28

hard
You have 5 grapes. Your friend has 1. How many more grapes do you have?

Example 29

easy
Mia has 8 markers. Leo has 5 markers. How many more markers does Mia have?

Example 30

easy
There are 10 fish and 6 frogs in the pond. How many more fish than frogs?

Example 31

easy
There are 9 red blocks and 6 blue blocks. How many fewer blue blocks?

Example 32

medium
Liam has 9 stickers. Noah has 2 stickers. How many more does Liam have?

Example 33

medium
Maya picked 6 flowers. Ben picked 10 flowers. How many fewer flowers did Maya pick?

Example 34

easy
Compute 15−815 - 8.

Example 35

easy
There are 17 red apples and 9 green apples in a basket. How many more red apples are there?

Example 36

easy
What is the difference between 20 and 11?

Example 37

medium
Compute 16−716 - 7.

Example 38

medium
There are 12 ducks and 19 geese in a pond. How many more geese than ducks?

Example 39

easy
Compute 58−2658 - 26.

Example 40

easy
A toy car costs \$42. A toy train costs \$28. How much more does the toy car cost than the toy train?

Example 41

easy
Compute 73−4773 - 47.

Example 42

medium
Sara had \$84. She spent \$27 on toys and \$15 on snacks. How much more money did she spend on toys than on snacks?

Example 43

medium
On Monday a juice bar sold 56 smoothies. On Tuesday it sold 79 smoothies. How many more smoothies were sold on Tuesday?
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Background Knowledge

These ideas may be useful before you work through the harder examples.

subtraction