Septendecim cives in foro suffragium ferunt.

Because ferunt is a third-person plural verb, so we expect a plural subject: they carry / they cast.

Cives can be either nominative plural or accusative plural, but here it makes sense as the nominative plural subject: the citizens.

So the basic structure is:

• Septendecim cives = seventeen citizens
• suffragium ferunt = cast a vote / are voting

So cives is the subject because it is the plural noun that matches the plural verb.

Cives is nominative plural here.

The noun is civis, civis (citizen), a third-declension noun. Its nominative plural is cives.

It is nominative because it is the subject of ferunt.

A learner often notices that cives could also be accusative plural in form, and that is true. But in this sentence, the grammar and meaning show that it must be nominative.

Because septendecim (seventeen) is an indeclinable numeral. That means it does not change its form for case, gender, or number.

So whether it describes masculine, feminine, or neuter nouns, and whether the noun is nominative, accusative, or another case, septendecim stays the same.

Here:

• septendecim cives = seventeen citizens

Unlike adjectives, many Latin numerals do not change form.

In Latin, suffragium ferre is an idiomatic expression meaning to cast a vote or to vote.

So suffragium is often singular even when several people are voting. The focus is on the act of voting, not on counting multiple separate ballots in English style.

Literally, it is something like to bear/carry a vote, but idiomatically it means to vote.

So:

• Septendecim cives suffragium ferunt
  = Seventeen citizens cast their votes / are voting

English often prefers the plural votes, but Latin commonly uses the singular in this expression.

Yes, the basic meaning of fero, ferre is to carry, bear, bring. But like many common verbs, it appears in idiomatic expressions.

In the phrase suffragium ferre, the meaning is:

• literally: to carry a vote
• idiomatically: to cast a vote, to vote

So this is a good example of how Latin often uses a normal verb plus a noun to make a fixed expression.

Ferunt is:

• present tense
• active voice
• indicative mood
• third person plural

It comes from the irregular verb fero, ferre, tuli, latum.

So ferunt means they carry, or in this sentence, idiomatically, they cast votes / they vote.

Because the verb is plural, it matches the plural subject cives.

Because in with the ablative usually means in or on in the sense of location.

Here, foro is the ablative singular of forum.

So:

• in foro = in the forum / in the marketplace

If Latin used in with the accusative, it would usually show motion into something:

• in forum = into the forum

But this sentence describes where the citizens are voting, not movement into the place, so Latin uses in foro.

It is the ablative singular of forum, fori, a second-declension neuter noun.

Its main forms are:

• nominative singular: forum
• genitive singular: fori
• ablative singular: foro

So in foro means in the forum.

Latin word order is more flexible than English word order because Latin uses endings to show grammatical function.

So this sentence can be understood even though the words are not arranged in a strict English-style pattern.

The order here is quite natural:

• Septendecim cives = subject phrase first
• in foro = location
• suffragium ferunt = object + verb

Putting the verb at or near the end is very common in Latin. The sentence is not unusual at all.

Word-for-word, yes, that reflects the individual meanings of the words. But it is not the best natural translation.

Because suffragium ferre is an idiom, the real sense is:

• Seventeen citizens are voting in the forum
• Seventeen citizens cast their votes in the forum

A literal translation can help you see the grammar, but an idiomatic translation gives the real meaning.

In reconstructed Classical pronunciation, approximately:

sep-ten-DE-kim KEE-wes in FO-roo soof-FRAH-gee-um FE-runt

A few helpful points:

• c is always hard, like k
• v is pronounced like English w
• g is always hard
• i is usually like ee
• u is like oo

So cives sounds roughly like kee-wes, not like English siv-eez.

Because cardinal numbers like septendecim do not behave exactly like ordinary first/second-declension adjectives such as bonus, bona, bonum.

Many Latin numerals are either:

• indeclinable, or
• only partly declinable

So instead of showing agreement by changing endings, septendecim simply stays the same and modifies the noun by meaning.

Thus:

• septendecim cives
• septendecim feminae
• septendecim oppida

all use the same form septendecim.

By itself, cives simply means citizens. Context determines more.

In a Roman setting, a reader will often naturally think of Roman citizens, especially if the sentence involves voting in the forum, because that sounds very Roman. But grammatically, the word itself does not automatically have to mean Roman citizens unless the context makes that clear.

So the word means citizens, while the broader situation may suggest Roman citizens.