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Three-digit subtraction worksheets

Twenty three-digit subtraction problems, stacked, in three versions with keys. Some borrow once, some twice, some not at all.

Subtraction: within 1,000 (three-digit)

NameDate

Subtract.

Sheet AFree at teach.peabody.kids

Subtraction: within 1,000 (three-digit)

NameDate

Subtract.

Sheet BFree at teach.peabody.kids

Subtraction: within 1,000 (three-digit)

NameDate

Subtract.

Sheet CFree at teach.peabody.kids

Answer key

Sheet A

  1. 54
  2. 264
  3. 549
  4. 189
  5. 198
  6. 646
  7. 192
  8. 211
  9. 393
  10. 105
  11. 297
  12. 230
  13. 147
  14. 537
  15. 423
  16. 419
  17. 46
  18. 567
  19. 265
  20. 127

Sheet B

  1. 60
  2. 242
  3. 329
  4. 219
  5. 428
  6. 97
  7. 399
  8. 491
  9. 145
  10. 26
  11. 46
  12. 290
  13. 43
  14. 294
  15. 247
  16. 237
  17. 2
  18. 166
  19. 32
  20. 125

Sheet C

  1. 3
  2. 435
  3. 291
  4. 434
  5. 493
  6. 112
  7. 341
  8. 147
  9. 230
  10. 24
  11. 47
  12. 397
  13. 73
  14. 203
  15. 104
  16. 375
  17. 140
  18. 50
  19. 239
  20. 442
Answer keyFree at teach.peabody.kids

Subtraction: 20 problems a sheet, 3 versions that do not repeat each other where the numbers allow.

How to use it

  1. Look at the sheet: it is a real, printable sheet. Switch between Sheet A, B and C, or press New numbers (N) for a fresh set.
  2. Change how many problems, how many versions, and whether the key prints. Settings stay in this browser; Share copies a link that rebuilds the same sheets.
  3. Press Print sheet A and key, or Print all. The answer key prints on its own page, so you can keep it back.

Ideas for class

  • Use the addition check on every problem, not just the ones a student doubts. It trains the habit of verifying.
  • Keep zeros in the minuend as a separate lesson: set aside one sheet where you circle problems with a zero in the tens place.
  • Offer base-ten blocks for the first week, then place-value charts, then nothing at all.

Related

Questions

Does any problem go below zero?

No. Each problem has a first number larger than the second, so answers are positive. Negative numbers appear later, on the integer sheets.

How is this different from the two-digit sheet?

It has a hundreds column, and with it the chance of borrowing twice in one problem, including across a zero in the middle, which is where most mistakes occur.

Are the answer keys checked?

Each answer is worked out by the code that wrote the problem, and our tests recompute every answer a second way and compare. Please still look over the key before you grade a class set.

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What this worksheet covers

Three-digit subtraction brings in the difficult cases: borrowing across a zero, borrowing twice, or borrowing from the hundreds. The sheet mixes them, so a student must decide at every column whether the top digit is large enough. Answers are always positive, because the number taken away is smaller than the number it comes from.

Who it is for

Second grade works within 1,000 under Common Core 2.NBT.B.7, and third grade under 3.NBT.A.2 expects fluency. It is best used after both two-digit subtraction sheets, once students borrow without prompting.

Subtracting three-digit numbers, with and without borrowing · grades 2 and 3

A worked example

Subtract 342 from 705: ones 5 − 2 = 3. Tens: 0 − 4 cannot be done, so break one hundred, giving 6 hundreds and 10 tens, then 10 − 4 = 6. Hundreds: 6 − 3 = 3. The answer is 363. Check: 363 + 342 = 705.

Mistakes to watch for

  • Subtracting the smaller digit from the larger in any column. Ask the student to read the column aloud: can seven be taken from two?
  • Failing to borrow across a zero. Show that the zero becomes ten only after the hundreds digit gives one up.

Make it your own

This sheet is one setting of the math worksheet generator. Open it there to change the skill, the range of numbers or the heading, or to mix several skills on one sheet.