【Learn Chinese】Basic Math in Chinese: Addition and Subtraction

Numbers are among the first Chinese words that you’ll learn, so it makes sense to learn how to do basic math in Mandarin. After all, percentages and decimals are all part of daily life—just ask anyone who shops regularly.
Read this article for essential math terms in Chinese. This article is about addition and subtraction.

As a warm-up, here are some simple Chinese math words:
数字 shù zì number
数学 shù xué math
偶数 ǒu shù even (number)
奇数 jī shù odd (number)
小于 xiăo yú less than
大于 dà yú greater than

Here’s how they’d work in sentences:
3 和 11 是奇数, 4 和 12 是偶数。 sān hé shí yī shì jī shù, sì hé shí èr shì ǒu shù. - 3 and 11 are odd numbers, 4 and 12 are even numbers.
10 小于 24 但是大于 8。 shí xiǎo yú èr shí sì dàn shì dà yú bā. - 10 is less than 24 but greater than 8.

Addition
Let’s get into the actual math! First off, addition:
加法 jiā fǎ addition
加 jiā to add
等于 děng yú to equal
和 hé sum
总数 zǒng shù sum total

1 加 1 等于 2。 yī jiā yī děng yú èr. - 1 plus 1 equals 2.
10 加 6 等于 16。 shí jiā liù děng yú shí liù. - 10 plus 6 equals 16.
5 加 3 的和是 8。 wǔ jiā sān de hé shì bā。- The sum of 5 and 3 is 8.

Subtraction
Here are some must-know words for subtraction:
减法 jiǎn fǎ subtraction
减 jiǎn to subtract
差数 chā shù difference
被减数 bèi jiăn shù minuend
减数 jiăn shù subtrahend

8 减 5 等于 3。 bā jiǎn wǔ děng yú sān. - 8 minus 5 equals 3.
55 减 32 等于 23。 wǔ shí wǔ jiǎn sān shí èr děng yú èr shí sān. - 55 minus 32 equals 23.
如 7 减 4 等于 3，则 7 为被减数，4为减数。rú qī jiǎn sì děng yú sān, zé qī wéi bèi jiǎn shù, sì wéi jiǎn shù. - In 7 minus 4 equals 3, 7 is the minuend, and 4 is the subtrahend.