原発

• Reading: げんぱつ
• Romaji: genpatsu
• Kanji breakdown: 原 (gen) — original, fundamental (short for 原子力); 発 (patsu) — emit, generate (short for 発電)
• Pronunciation: /geɴ.pa.tsɯ/

Meaning

Nuclear power plant; nuclear power generation. A common abbreviation used in everyday speech and news.

A widely used abbreviation of 原子力発電 (genshiryoku hatsuden, nuclear power generation) or 原子力発電所 (genshiryoku hatsudensho, nuclear power plant). Context determines which meaning applies. Extremely common in news and daily conversation, especially since the 2011 Fukushima disaster. Key collocations include 原発事故 (genpatsu jiko, nuclear accident), 原発再稼働 (genpatsu saikadou, reactor restart), and 脱原発 (datsu genpatsu, nuclear phase-out).

Examples

1. 原発の再稼働をめぐって賛否が分かれている。 Opinion is divided over restarting nuclear plants.
2. 福島の原発事故から十五年が経った。 It has been fifteen years since the Fukushima nuclear accident.
3. 脱原発を求めるデモが各地で行われた。 Demonstrations calling for a nuclear phase-out were held across the country.

Usage Guide

Context: energy, news, politics

Tone: neutral

Origin & History

Abbreviation of 原子力発電 (genshiryoku hatsuden) or 原子力発電所 (genshiryoku hatsudensho). Formed by taking the first kanji of each compound: 原 (gen) + 発 (patsu). Became an everyday word after Japan's nuclear energy programme expanded in the 1970s.

Cultural Context

Era: Modern

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal