installment
n. countablen. one of several parts of a payment or a story that you receive over a period of time. You use this when you pay for something in small amounts or read a book series.
n. one of several parts of a total sum of money to be paid at specified intervals; also refers to one of several parts of a published work or broadcast program. Often used in the context of debt repayment or serialised media.
I am paying for the new sofa in monthly installments.
The final installment of the fantasy trilogy will be released in bookstores next Tuesday morning.
While the initial down payment was substantial, the remaining balance was structured into twelve manageable installments to accommodate the buyer's seasonal cash flow.
A 1732 alteration of estallment, from Anglo-Norman estaler (“fix payments”), from Old French estal (“fixed position”), from Old High German stal (“stall", "standing place”) The sense of "part of a whole produced in advance of the rest" is from 1823.
From install + -ment, install from Old French installer, from Medieval Latin installare, from Medieval Latin in- and Medieval Latin stallum, stall from a Germanic source (compare Old High German stal).
Commonly paired with 'monthly', 'final', or 'next'. In British English, the spelling 'instalment' with a single 'l' is preferred.