Plus–minus sign

The plus and minus signs are symbols we use in math to show if we are adding or taking away numbers. Think of the plus sign as a happy smiley face that says "we are adding!" and the minus sign as a sad face that says "we are taking away."

For example, if we have 2 + 3, we put the plus sign in between the two numbers to show we are adding them together. The answer is 5.

But if we have 5 - 2, we put the minus sign in between the two numbers to show we are taking away 2 from 5. The answer is 3.

So the plus sign (+) means add and the minus sign (-) means take away. It's like having two different emojis to help us do math!