SARAH: The verb “to sue” comes from the latin, sequi, and originally meant to follow, or to pursue. For example, one would sue a deer using a hunting dog, who would sniff out the suit, or trail. Only later did sue take on its modern meaning: to pursue a legal claim.

RALPH: Mercutio describes a nobleman dreaming of representing someone with a suit before the king, for which he will be handsomely rewarded.

SARAH: But by using the phrase, “smelling out a suit”, Shakespeare alludes to the earlier sense of the word, and the image takes on a more animalistic tone.