("prefer") for later malo the emendation of the final -e of singular imperatives the retention of -u- in place of the later -i- in words such as maxumus, proxumus, lacrumare etc. (see Latin spelling and pronunciation §Sonus medius), and of -vo- before r, s or t, where the use after ca. 150 BC would favor -ve- (as vostrum for later vestrum) the use of the -ier ending for the present passive and deponent infinitive (e.g. exsurgier for exsurgī) the forms of sum often joined to the preceding word, which is called prodelision (as bonumst "it's good" for bonum est "it is good") the dropping of the final -s of 2nd-singular verb forms and the final -e of the question-particle -ne when the two are joined (as viden? for videsne? "you see? you get it?") the retention of short -ǒ in noun endings in the second declension for later -ŭ the retention in many words of qu- instead of later c- (as in quom instead of cum) the use of the -āī genitive singular ending, disyllabic, besides -ae the retention of final -d after long vowel in the pronouns mēd, tēd, sēd (accusative and ablative, used before prevocalic words, forms without -d also occur) the occasional addition of a final -pte, -te, or -met to pronouns the use of -īs as an accusative plural and occasionally nominative plural ending. These are the most common linguistic peculiarities (from the later perspective) in the plays of Plautus, some of them being also found in Terence, and noting them helps in the reading of his works and gives insight into early Roman language and interaction. Means of expression There are certain ways in which Plautus expressed himself in his plays, and these individual means of expression give a certain flair to his style of writing. The means of expression are not always specific to the writer, i.e., idiosyncratic, yet they are characteristic of the writer. Two examples of these characteristic means of expression are the use of proverbs and the use of Greek language in the plays of Plautus. Plautus employed the use of proverbs in many of his plays. Proverbs would address a certain genre such as law, religion, medicine, trades, crafts, and seafaring. Plautus' proverbs and proverbial expressions number into the hundreds. They sometimes appear alone or interwoven within a speech. The most common appearance of proverbs in Plautus appears to be