closed corporation
- noun
- /kloʊzd kɔːrˈpɔːreɪʃən/
- Specialized
:
sociedad cerrada
- Only a few investors can buy shares in our closed corporation, as it is not publicly traded.
Examples
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The local bakery is a closed corporation, with shares owned only by family members.
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She invested in a closed corporation, joining a select group of owners who share decision-making responsibilities.
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And one of those is a closed corporation.
Synonyms
8
3.7
A company owned by a small group whose shares are not sold to the public
A company that a small group of people own and run and whose shares are not sold to the public
A company owned by a few people whose shares are not sold on public stock markets
A company owned by a small group whose shares are not sold on the stock market
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly compositional: 'closed' (= not open to the public) modifies 'corporation' (a legal business entity), so a learner who knows both words can infer a corporation that is not open to public/share trading. Although it is a technical/legal term, the constituent meanings map cleanly onto the MWE, making it predictable for B1 learners.
Etymology
Closed corporation comes from the image of a company with its 'doors' shut to the public: the word closed means it is kept private and the word corporation means the group that owns the business, so only a few people hold its shares. That's why a closed corporation today is a company whose shares are 'not available for public trading'.