instalment
1 Britishnoun
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one of the portions, usually equal, into which a debt is divided for payment at specified intervals over a fixed period
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a portion of something that is issued, broadcast, or published in parts, such as a serial in a magazine
noun
Etymology
Origin of instalment
C18: from obsolete estallment, probably from Old French estaler to fix, hence to agree rate of payment, from estal something fixed, place, from Old High German stal stall 1
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.
They are among 26 bands, singers and rappers who have been chosen to share the first instalment of cash.
From BBC • Apr. 24, 2026
They famously recorded the first instalment in the loft of his London home, where Madonna carved her name into the rafters during idle moments.
From BBC • Apr. 15, 2026
An IMF delegation is currently in Sri Lanka to review its four-year $2.9 billion bailout loan before releasing a $700 million instalment.
From Barron's • Apr. 4, 2026
A swarm of tourists craned their necks to see the instalment of the cross's upper arm, visible amid the scaffolding and workers who put finishing touches from their harnesses.
From Barron's • Feb. 20, 2026
The third instalment was the Bishop of Rochester, who had been appointed nuncio.
From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White
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.
