installment
1 Americannoun
-
Finance. any of several parts into which a debt or other sum payable is divided for payment at successive fixed times; the scheduled periodic payment made on an installment loan.
to pay for furniture in monthly installments.
-
a single portion of something furnished or issued by parts at successive times.
a magazine serial in six installments.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of installment1
First recorded in 1770–75; in- 2 + obsolete (e)stallment, equivalent to estall “to arrange payment on an installment plan” (perhaps from Anglo-French ) + -ment
Origin of installment2
Explanation
An installment is a part or section of something, like the monthly installment you pay on your credit card debt or the latest installment of your favorite TV show. "Partial payment" is the oldest meaning of this word, and it's still a common way to use it: "She sold me the bike and I'm paying her in installments." It's also used for anything split into sections or episodes. Your favorite serialized comic comes out in installments every three months, but you only have to wait a day for the next installment of that afternoon soap opera!
Vocabulary lists containing installment
All My Rage
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Chapter 25: The Jazz Age
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Somewhere Between Bitter and Sweet
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The last installment of the franchise, Grand Theft Auto 5, was released in September 2013 and became one of the best-selling games of all time.
From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026
With Amicus on a brief summer break, we’re bringing you the final installment of Slow Burn’s latest season, Becoming Justice Gorsuch.
From Slate ● Aug. 29, 2026
It’s been a long wait for the latest installment, with several delays that pushed the release back more than a year and multiple leaks, which Rockstar Games on Wednesday called “heartbreaking.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
For Saturday’s installment, the self-proclaimed “carefully curated celebration” produced a somewhat underwhelming set of undercards, with LCD Soundsystem and the Strokes carrying the momentum for the entire affair.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 24, 2026
As I close this installment, let me say this: for all the times my aunt admonished me that a lady never goes out without at least one petticoat under her skirt, I am most thankful.
From "Hattie Big Sky" by Kirby Larson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
