核心畫面

Picture something whole that is too big to hand over in one go, so it is cut into equal parts and given out one part at a time, with a wait in between. The word never names the whole thing. It names one of the parts. That is true when the whole thing is a sum of money and you pay a piece of it each month, and it is just as true when the whole thing is a story and one piece of it reaches you each week. Both uses answer the same question: which piece is this, and how many are still coming?

「instalment」可以想成一個太大、沒辦法一次交出去的東西,被切成一份一份,隔一段時間給一份。這個字從來不是指更多收起「instalment」可以想成一個太大、沒辦法一次交出去的東西,被切成一份一份,隔一段時間給一份。這個字從來不是指整個東西。它指的是其中一份。整個東西是一筆錢時,你每個月交一份,那一份就是 instalment。整個東西是一個故事時,你每週收到一段,那一段也是 instalment。兩種用法都在回答同一個問題:這是第幾份,後面還剩幾份。

Two branches

一份一份付出去的錢

被切開的是一筆錢。這是最常遇到的一種,買東西、貸款、繳學費都會碰到。

noun · B2

One of a series of regular payments that you keep making over a period of time until the whole amount you owe has been paid.

分期付款的一期

一段一段出來的故事

同樣的切法,這次切開的是一個故事。給出去的不是錢而是內容,等待的一方不是店家而是讀者或觀眾。

noun · B2

One part of a story that comes out in separate parts, one after another — a piece printed in a magazine or newspaper each week, or one film, book, or game in a longer series.

(系列的)一集、一部

原始詞典資料1 筆記錄

以下是外部詞典記錄的用法,原文照列,我們還沒有寫成教學內容。上面的說明才是我們自己寫的;有些用法可能上面已經講過了。

instalmentnoun/ɪnˈstɔːl.mənt/

  • 1

    Australia, UK, and Canada standard spelling of installment.

資料來源:英文維基詞典 English WiktionaryCC BY-SA 4.0)。 原文照列,未經改寫。