Pronunciation

How to pronounce “instalment

“instalment” is pronounced /ɪnˈstɔlmənt/ (in-STAWL-muhnt) in American English and /ɪnˈstɔːlmənt/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “tal”.
The sound

Say “instalment” in 3 beats

Say it like this

instalment

/ɪnˈstɔlmənt/

The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /ɪnˈstɔːlmənt/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.

3 beats
  1. insɪn
  2. talstɔlstress
  3. mentmənt
IPA (American)
/ɪnˈstɔlmənt/
IPA (British)
/ɪnˈstɔːlmənt/
Respelling
in-STAWL-muhnt
Syllables
3 — ins-TAL-ment
Stress
Stress the second syllable: ins-TAL-ment. “tal” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
noun
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/ɪnˈstɔlmənt/

British

/ɪnˈstɔːlmənt/

No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.

Watch out

Where “instalment” goes wrong

  • Often heard

    IN-stal-ment

    the stress is on STAWL and the a is the vowel of law

Meaning

What “instalment” means

  1. noun

    a part of a broadcast serial

  2. noun

    a part of a published serial

  3. noun

    the act of installing something (as equipment)

    the telephone installation took only a few minutes

Say it in a sentence

The final instalment of the loan is due in March.
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

8 sounds, in the order you say them

Each sound has its own page: where the tongue goes, what it is usually confused with, and words to drill it on.

Questions

instalment”, answered

How do you pronounce “instalment”?

“instalment” is pronounced /ɪnˈstɔlmənt/ (in-STAWL-muhnt) in American English and /ɪnˈstɔːlmənt/ in British English — 3 syllables, stressed on “tal”. Build it as ins-TAL-ment, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “instalment” have?

3: ins · tal · ment. The beat lands on the second, “tal”.

Is “instalment” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /ɪnˈstɔlmənt/ (in-STAWL-muhnt); British English says /ɪnˈstɔːlmənt/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “instalment” mean?

As a noun: a part of a broadcast serial For example: “The final instalment of the loan is due in March.” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “instalment”?

Stress the second syllable: ins-TAL-ment. “tal” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

Now say “instalment” and see every sound

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