What is 5.0 − 1.25?

• A. 3.75
• B. 3.5
• C. 3.25
• D. 3.0

Answer: (A)

Subtracting decimals requires lining up the decimal points and filling in zeros so both numbers have the same number of digits after the decimal. Here we treat 5.0 as 5.00. Subtracting 1.25 from 5.00, you need to borrow in the hundredths place, which also affects the tenths and ones. After the borrowing steps, the hundredths place gives 10 − 5 = 5, the tenths place gives 9 − 2 = 7, and the ones place gives 4 − 1 = 3. So the result is 3.75. The other options come from not aligning the decimals or not borrowing correctly, which would change the digits after the decimal.