Operation Keywords
Ever wondered how to turn confusing word problems into math you can actually solve? The secret is recognizing specific words that signal which operation to use.
When you see words like "sum," "total," "altogether," or "combined," they're telling you to add numbers together. If a problem mentions something "increased by" or "more than," that's also a clue to use addition.
For subtraction, look for words like "difference," "decreased by," "fewer," "take away," or "less than." These signal that you need to subtract one number from another.
Multiplication keywords include "product," "times," "double," "triple," or "of." When a problem mentions something "increased by a factor" or "twice" a number, you'll need to multiply.
Pro Tip: The word "of" often signals multiplication, especially in phrases like "half of 20" (which means 0.5 × 20). This is one of the most commonly misunderstood math keywords!
Division appears when you see "quotient," "per," "ratio," "divided by," or "split up." Words like "half" or "percent" typically involve division as well.