audiuntur

Audiuntur is a Latin verb form meaning “they are heard.” It is the third-person plural present indicative passive of audire, the verb “to hear.” As a passive present, audiuntur describes sounds or statements that are being heard by an agent (often unspecified) rather than by the subject themselves. The form belongs to the fourth conjugation, with the standard present passive endings for 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th person plural being -imur, -imini, -untur for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd persons respectively in the passive voice.

In use, audiuntur typically introduces what is heard, rather than what someone actively hears. The agent performing the hearing may be omitted, marked with a by-phrase in Latin (e.g., a quo, a quibus), or implied. The translation “they are heard” may apply to voices, sounds, or reports entering perception.

Example: Voces a longe audiuntur. Translation: Voices are heard from afar. This illustrates the passive voice in a straightforward descriptive context, common in narrative and descriptive Latin prose.

Related forms include the active audiunt (they hear) and other tenses of audire (e.g., audiunt, audiebant, audiverunt). As a standard present passive form, audiuntur appears across classical and late Latin texts to convey reception by the senses or reception of information, without specifying the actor.