Question about plural

[Terìran Tawka]

Kaltxì!

I was wondering if there is any option to use ay+ instead of me+ sometimes. I.e. if I'm talking to two people, but their number is not so important for me, can I say smuktu instead of mesmuktu? This thing came on my mind, because there is no (or I didn't noticed it yet) prefix for three persons (pxesmuktu?), despite existence of trial number. Maybe number isn't so important if it doesn't make big difference?

[wm.annis]

The trial form of nouns is the same as it is of pronouns, the leniting prefix pxe-.

In the movie, when Eytukan says that Jake and Grace are to be bound, he says mefot yìm bind the two of them.  There could be no doubt at all whom he wanted tied up, but he still used the dual.

[Terìran Tawka]

Thank you very much. Especially for the quote from the film. It was one of a few I couldn't understand

[Erimeyz]

I was wondering if there is any option to use ay+ instead of me+ sometimes. I.e. if I'm talking to two people, but their number is not so important for me, can I say smuktu instead of mesmuktu?

We don't know yet.

The movie quote wm.annis mentioned above suggests the answer is "no", but I don't think that example is conclusive.  Another frequent poster has a private email from Dr. Frommer which also suggests the answer is "no", but I've seen that email and I don't think it's conclusive (the poster disagrees with me on that point).  My thinking is that in both of those examples, the speaker wants to stress the "two-ness" of the people being referred to, so using me+ is a better choice than using ay+ in those particular cases.  In other words, me+ is optional but common, whereas ay+ could be used for two in cases where, as you say, their number is not particularly important (for whatever reason).

But that's just a guess on my part.  I have no evidence to support it, and the other viewpoint has some evidence (although I don't think it's very strong).  We really just don't know.

  - Eri