besetzte

Besetzte is a German word that can function both as a finite verb form and as an attributive adjective form derived from the verb besetzen, meaning to occupy or to staff. As a finite form, besetzte is the simple past (Präteritum) for ich, er, or she/he; for example, er besetzte den Posten means he occupied the position. In ordinary speech and writing, the perfect tense is far more common, formed with haben: er hat den Posten besetzt.

As an adjective, besetzt (with various endings) describes something that is occupied or staffed. The form besetzte occurs as the attributive declension after definite articles or other determiner words, for example der besetzte Raum (the occupied room), die besetzte Leitung (the occupied/engaged line), das besetzte Gebiet (the occupied territory). In plural, after a definite article the form becomes die besetzten Räume. The form also appears in broader contexts to describe something that is busy or unavailable, such as eine besetzte Telefonnummer (a busy phone line) or besetzte Sessel in a theater.

Usage notes: besetzte can additionally appear in phrases describing historical or political situations, most notably in the plural besetzte Gebiete (“occupied territories”) or in the noun Besetzung, which refers to the act or process of occupation or staffing. The base participle besetzt is commonly used as a predicate adjective, e.g., Die Räume sind besetzt.

In sum, besetzte covers both a past tense verb form and an inflected adjective form meaning occupied, with usage spanning everyday language and historical/political contexts.