Translation guide
A safety device that automatically stops the flow of electricity in a circuit when it becomes overloaded or short-circuited. In Japanese, the term is commonly expressed using loanwords or native compounds.
The physical device that interrupts an electric circuit to prevent damage or fire.
The most common term in everyday Japanese, derived from 'breaker'. Used in homes and offices.
A measure that halts an activity or process to prevent negative consequences, often used in finance or computing.
For household electrical panels, use ブレーカー. In engineering documents or formal specifications, 遮断器 is appropriate. サーキットブレーカー is mainly used in financial or IT contexts.
Do not translate 'circuit breaker' word-for-word as 回路遮断器 (かいろしゃだんき) in casual conversation; it sounds overly technical and unnatural.
ブレーカーが落ちた。
The circuit breaker tripped.
ブレーカーを上げてください。
Please reset the circuit breaker.
A more technical term used in engineering or formal contexts. Literally 'interrupting device'.
この遮断器は定格電流が30アンペアです。
This circuit breaker has a rated current of 30 amperes.
A direct loanword from English, sometimes used in technical specifications or IT contexts, but less common in daily speech.
サーキットブレーカーの選定には注意が必要です。
Care must be taken when selecting a circuit breaker.
Used in stock market contexts to refer to a mechanism that temporarily halts trading during sharp declines.
株価が急落したため、サーキットブレーカーが発動した。
The circuit breaker was triggered due to a sharp drop in stock prices.
Literally 'safety device', can be used metaphorically to describe any safeguard that stops a process.
このルールは過剰なリスクを防ぐための安全装置だ。
This rule is a circuit breaker to prevent excessive risk.
Means 'brake' or 'check', used figuratively for something that stops an undesirable trend.
インフレに歯止めをかける政策が必要だ。
We need policies that act as a circuit breaker on inflation.