# Resource: The four basic operations

The four basic arithmetic operations with official symbols and terms:[1,2,3,4]

$$a$$$$+$$$$b$$$$=$$$$c$$
Subtraction[6]
$$a$$$$-$$$$b$$$$=$$$$c$$
Minuend3MinusSubtrahend2Difference
Multiplication[7]
$$a$$$$\cdot$$$$b$$$$=$$$$c$$
$$a$$$$\times$$$$b$$$$=$$$$c$$
$$a$$$$b$$$$=$$$$c$$
$$a$$$$*$$$$b$$$$=$$$$c$$
Factor4 or
multiplicand
TimesFactor or
multiplier
Product
Division[9]
$$a$$$$/$$$$b$$$$=$$$$c$$
$$a$$$\div$ 7$$b$$$$=$$$$c$$
$$a$$$$:$$$$b$$$$=$$$$c$$
Dividend6 or numerator'Divided by'
or 'per'
Divisor or denominatorQuotient5 or
fraction

Note the possibility of skipping the multiplication sign completely. Also note the possibility of replacing the dots in the $\div$ symbol for division with the numbers themselves, one being above and the other below the horizontal line. That notation-style is typically called a ‘fraction‘, although all divisions are fractions.

When performing these operations, prioritise them according to the so-called PEMDAS:

Order or operations (PEMDAS)[10]
First do...Parentheses
Then do...Exponents (powers)
Then do...Multiplications
as well as...Divisions