Subtraction of Binary Numbers
Now that you are familiar with the addition of binary numbers, subtraction will be
easy. The following are the four rules that you must observe when subtracting:
The following example (101102 - 11002) demonstrates the four
rules of binary subtraction:
Rule 4 presents a different situation because you cannot subtract 1 from 0. Since you
cannot subtract 1 from 0 and have a positive difference, you must borrow the 1 from the
next higher order column of the minuend. The borrow may be indicated as shown below:
Now observe the following method of borrowing across more than one column in the
example, 10002 - 12:
Let's practice some subtraction by solving the following problems:
Q.15 Subtract:
Q.16 Subtract:
Q.17 Subtract:
Q.18 Subtract:
Q.19 Subtract:
Q.20 Subtract: