besloten

Besloten is a Dutch adjective meaning closed, shut, or private. It describes something that is not open to the public or is restricted in access. Common usages include een besloten kamer (a private room), een besloten vergadering (a private or closed meeting), and een besloten kring (a private circle). In legal and business language the term appears in the designation Besloten Vennootschap, abbreviated BV, the Dutch private limited company. In a BV, shares are privately held and transfer of shares is often restricted by the articles of association; there is no public market for shares. The opposite form is the Naamloze Vennootschap, NV, a public company.

Etymologically, the word is related to the verb sluiten (to close) and is formed with the prefix be-, which can indicate a completed or intensified action, yielding a sense of "made closed" or "not open." In use, besloten contrasts with opened or open terms such as geopend (opened) or openbaar (public), and with synonyms like privé, geheim, or beperkt in access. The phrase de vergadering is besloten is used to indicate that outsiders are not allowed to attend.

Besloten is common in everyday Dutch as well as in formal documents, and it helps distinguish things that are private or restricted from those that are public or accessible. Overall, the core sense is privacy and restricted access, with the corporate term BV being the best-known specialized usage.