VocabularyBasePractice words

Meaning & use

ISA

abbreviation·AdvancedBritishfinance

Last updated

UK/ˈaɪsə/
US/ˈaɪsə/

Meanings

  1. abbreviationcountableBritishfinance

    A British savings or investment account, shortened from Individual Savings Account, in which the interest or profit is free of tax up to a yearly limit.

    Grammar: Pronounced as a word, eye-suh, and written in capitals.

    Patterns

    • open an ISA
    • pay into an ISA

    She opened a cash ISA to save for a house deposit.

    He pays money into his ISA every month.

    The interest on an ISA is not taxed in the UK.

  2. abbreviationcountablecomputingtechnical

    The set of basic instructions that a computer processor can understand and carry out, short for instruction set architecture.

    Grammar: Usually read letter by letter, I-S-A, in computing.

    Patterns

    • the ISA of a processor

    The ISA defines what commands the processor can run.

    Engineers at the company designed a new ISA for low-power chips.

    Programs must be compiled for the right ISA.

Word forms

pluralISAs

Common combinations

cash ISA
A cash ISA works like a savings account without tax on interest.
stocks and shares ISA
He invests in a stocks and shares ISA for the long term.
open an ISA
You can open an ISA at most banks.
ISA allowance
This year's ISA allowance is a fixed amount set by the government.
junior ISA
Parents set up a junior ISA for their daughter.

Synonyms and how they differ

savings account
A savings account is any account that pays interest, while an ISA is specifically tax-free in the UK.
tax-free account
This descriptive phrase covers similar accounts in other countries, but ISA is the British name.
IRA
An IRA is the American retirement account with tax advantages, which is different from the UK ISA.
nest egg
A nest egg is the money saved, not the type of account holding it.

Word family

saver noun
a person who puts money aside
savings noun
money kept for later use
account noun
an arrangement to keep money in a bank
allowance noun
the amount you may pay in each year

Commonly confused: ISA or IRA? ISA or Isa?

ISA vs IRA

An IRA is an American retirement account. Do not use it for the British ISA.

ISA vs Isa

Isa can also be a first name, and it is spelled in lowercase after the first letter.

Practice

A British worker who wants to save money without paying tax on the interest might open an ____.

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “ISA”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

Your sentence stays on this page and is not sent anywhere.

Explore more words