ACT Math : How to subtract negative numbers
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Example Questions
Example Question #11 : Concepts
What is 1 + (–1) – (–3) + 4 ?
6
1
9
3
7
7
You simplify the expression to be 1 – 1 + 3 + 4 = 7
Example Question #1 : How To Subtract Negative Numbers
Solve the following equation for 
To begin, we need to recall how to subtract negative numbers. Remember, when subtracting a negative number, the two negatives cancel out, creating a positive.
So, this:
Becomes this:
We can combine like terms on the left to get:
Then, we can subtract 
In this case, we are subtracting from a negative number, which is just like adding two negative numbers, or subtracting from a positive number. The result will be more negative, because we will be moving further to the left on the number line.
Example Question #1 : How To Subtract Negative Numbers
Compute the following:
Convert all the double signs to a single sign before solving. Remember, two minus (negative) signs combine to form a plus (positive) sign, and a plus (positive) sign and a minus (negative) sign combine to form a minus (negative) sign.
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