Meanings
plural circuit breakers
- businessAn electrical switch capable of opening and closing an electrical circuit in all operating conditions, including fault situations.
Typically traction packages monitor the supply frequency and if it strays outside pre-set limits open the circuit breaker between the pantograph and the transformer to shut off the power.
2019 October, Roger Ford, “Power failure highlights specification confusion”, in Modern Railways, page 271 more example
From the evidence of witnesses and of the recorded passing times, including the time at which the circuit breakers were tripped when the wires were brought down, the train was travelling at a speed of not less than 70 m.p.h.
1961 November, “Talking of Trains: Derailment near Holmes Chapel”, in Trains Illustrated, page 652- businessA circuit breaker that automatically breaks overcurrent conditions; a type of overcurrent protective device.
- SingaporeQuarantine measures intended to prevent spread of pandemics, especially COVID-19.
- computingA design pattern used to detect failures and prevent them from constantly recurring.
Synonyms & antonyms
nounSynonym of trading curb.
More synonyms by meaning
nouna device that trips like a switch and opens the circuit when overloaded
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Translations
Catalan tallacircuit, disjuntor
- tallacircuithigh-current electrical switch
- disjuntorhigh-current electrical switch
Chinese Mandarin 阻斷措施 /阻断措施, 斷路器 /断路器
- 阻斷措施 /阻断措施 (zǔduàncuòshī)quarantine (Singapore)
- 斷路器 /断路器 (duànlùqì)high-current electrical switch
Dutch zekering
- zekeringhigh-current electrical switch
Finnish katkaisin, katkaisija
- katkaisinhigh-current electrical switch
- katkaisijahigh-current electrical switch
French disjoncteur
- disjoncteurhigh-current electrical switch
German Leistungsschutzschalter, Sicherungsautomat
- Leistungsschutzschalterhigh-current electrical switch
- Sicherungsautomathigh-current electrical switch
- Sicherunghigh-current electrical switch
Greek διακόπτης κυκλώματος
- διακόπτης κυκλώματος (diakóptis kyklómatos)high-current electrical switch
Hungarian megszakító
- megszakítóhigh-current electrical switch
Indonesian pemutus daya, pemutus tenaga
- pemutus dayahigh-current electrical switch
- pemutus tenagahigh-current electrical switch
- pemutus sirkithigh-current electrical switch
- pemutus rangkaihigh-current electrical switch
- pemutus arushigh-current electrical switch
- pemutus sirkuithigh-current electrical switch
Irish scoradán ciorcaid, réabaire ciorcaid
- scoradán ciorcaidhigh-current electrical switch
- réabaire ciorcaidhigh-current electrical switch
- iamh is oscailthigh-current electrical switch
Italian interruttore magnetotermico, ruttore
- interruttore magnetotermicospecific type of overcurrent protective device
- ruttorehigh-current electrical switch
Japanese 遮断器
- 遮断器 (shadanki)high-current electrical switch
Korean 차단기, 두꺼비집
- 차단기 (chadan'gi)high-current electrical switch
- 두꺼비집 (dukkeobijip)high-current electrical switch
Malay pemutus rantaian jangkitan, pemutus litar
- pemutus rantaian jangkitanquarantine (Singapore)
- pemutus litarhigh-current electrical switch
Māori katiara
- katiarahigh-current electrical switch
Norwegian effektbryter
- effektbryterhigh-current electrical switch
Polish bezpiecznik
- bezpiecznikhigh-current electrical switch
Portuguese disjuntor
- disjuntorhigh-current electrical switch
Romanian disjunctor, separator
- disjunctorhigh-current electrical switch
- separatorhigh-current electrical switch
- întrerupătorhigh-current electrical switch
Russian автомати́ческий выключа́тель
- автомати́ческий выключа́тель (avtomatíčeskij vyključátelʹ)high-current electrical switch
Spanish disyuntor, cortacircuitos
- disyuntorspecific type of overcurrent protective device
- cortacircuitosspecific type of overcurrent protective device
- cortacorrientespecific type of overcurrent protective device
- disjuntorhigh-current electrical switch
- disyuntorhigh-current electrical switch
- cortacircuitoshigh-current electrical switch
- cortacorrientehigh-current electrical switch
Swedish effektbrytare, dvärgbrytare
- effektbrytarehigh-current electrical switch
- dvärgbrytarehigh-current electrical switch
Tamil மின்தடைச் சாதனம்
- மின்தடைச் சாதனம் (miṉtaṭaic cātaṉam)quarantine (Singapore)
Thai สะพานไฟ
- สะพานไฟ (sà-paan-fai)high-current electrical switch
Turkish devre kesici, şalter
- devre kesicihigh-current electrical switch
- şalterhigh-current electrical switch
Vietnamese cầu dao, aptomat
- cầu daohigh-current electrical switch
- aptomathigh-current electrical switch
Cite this entry
circuit breaker. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/circuit%20breaker
“circuit breaker.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/circuit%20breaker. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “circuit breaker,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/circuit%20breaker.
Source: circuit breaker on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.