What does it mean to deduct a point backwards in mathematics?
Deducting one point is to subtract 1 point on the basis of no score (that is, 0 point) in this question.
Some exams are graded correctly, without scoring 0, and points are deducted for wrong answers. The main purpose is to reduce the ambiguity and guess as much as possible, and to test the respondents' real mastery of the exam content.