pay ‧ ment S2 W1 /ˈpeɪmənt/ BrE AmE noun
[ Word Family: noun : ↑ pay , ↑ payment , ↑ repayment , ↑ payer , ↑ payee ; verb : ↑ pay , ↑ repay , ↑ underpay ≠ ↑ overpay ; adjective : paid ≠ ↑ unpaid , ↑ underpaid ≠ ↑ overpaid , ↑ payable ]
1 . [countable] an amount of money that has been or must be paid:
You can make a payment in any bank.
They fell behind on their mortgage payments.
2 . [uncountable] the act of paying for something
payment of
There are severe penalties for late payment of taxes.
payment in
Most hotels here accept payment in dollars.
Payment can be made by cheque or credit card.
We do accept payment in instalments (=paying in small amounts over a period of time) .
She demanded payment in advance.
in payment for something (=in order to pay for something)
cheques received in payment for goods supplied
on payment of something (=when an amount has been paid)
Any item can be reserved on payment of a deposit.
3 . payment in kind a way of paying for something with goods or services instead of money
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COLLOCATIONS
■ verbs
▪ make (a) payment
He was supposed to make payments of $250 a month.
▪ receive (a) payment
You will receive a cash payment on your 65th birthday.
▪ meet/keep up the payments (on something) (=be able to make regular payments)
He was having trouble meeting the interest payments.
▪ fall behind on the payments ( also fall behind with the payments British English ) (=not make payments when you should)
I’d run up nearly £4,000 in debt, and was beginning to fall behind with the payments.
■ ADJECTIVES/NOUN + payment
▪ a monthly payment
Home buyers have seen their monthly payments go up by more than 50 percent.
▪ a cash payment (=a payment in cash)
He provided pills to athletes in return for cash payments.
▪ a down payment (=a small payment for something you are buying, when you will pay the rest later)
We were able to put a down payment on an apartment.
▪ an interest payment (=a payment of interest on a loan)
▪ a mortgage payment (=a payment towards a loan on your house)
Your mortgage payments could fall if interest rates drop.
▪ an interim payment (=a payment that is made before something is finished or settled)
It may be reasonable for the builder to ask for interim payments as the work progresses.
▪ a bonus payment (=an additional payment because success has been achieved)
The team had made illegal bonus payments to players.
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THESAURUS
▪ payment an amount of money that you pay for something, especially when it is only one part of the total amount you have to pay:
They have a monthly car payment of £220.
▪ instalment British English , installment American English a regular payment you make to pay back money that you have borrowed or to pay for things that you have already received:
I borrowed $2,000, which was to be paid back in monthly installments of $250.
▪ deposit ( also down payment ) part of the cost of something that you pay before you get it, so that it will not be sold to anyone else:
They used the money they inherited as a down payment on a house.
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The hotel asks for a $20 deposit to reserve a room.
▪ subscription an amount of money you pay, usually once a year, to receive copies of a newspaper or magazine:
A subscription to the magazine is $52 a year.
▪ tip a small amount of money that you give someone, for example a waitress or taxi driver, in addition to paying for a service they have given you:
I usually leave a 10% tip.
▪ premium the amount you pay for insurance each year:
your monthly life insurance premiums