minus

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
minus/ˈmʌɪnəs/

▶preposition

• 1 with the subtraction of.

  ■ informal lacking: he was minus a finger.

• 2 (of temperature) falling below zero by: minus 40 degrees centigrade.

▶adjective

• 1 (before a number) below zero; negative.

• 2 (after a grade) rather worse than: C minus.

• 3 having a negative electric charge.

▶noun

• 1 short for minus sign.

• 2 informal a disadvantage.

– origin C15: from L., neut. of minor ‘less’.