endings of "inglese" when used as an adjective
Just studying my Italian Grammar Book regarding the use of nationalities as adjectives, particularly " inglese "
It states :
Italian adjectives ending in -e can describe/qualify both masculine and feminine nouns.However the plural
endings of these adjectives follow the same rules as nouns ending in -e
This is a little confusing for me
OK so using "inglese" as an adjective
would you say based on the above rules of grammar as stated:
The English man = .L'uomo inglese
The English woman = La donna inglese
and in plural form
The English girls = le ragazze inglesi
The English boys = I ragazzi inglesi
The English cars = le machine inglesi

Also if for instance you meet an Italian woman for the first time
is it correct you say.....italiana lei ?
and would it be ....inglese lei ......... for an English woman

Thanks in advance for your help

Question

endings of "inglese" when used as an adjective
Just studying my Italian Grammar Book regarding the use of nationalities as adjectives, particularly " inglese "
It states :
Italian adjectives ending in -e  can describe/qualify both masculine and feminine nouns.However the plural 
endings of these adjectives follow the same rules as nouns ending in  -e
This is a little confusing for me
OK so using "inglese" as an adjective 
would  you say based on the above rules of grammar  as stated:
The English man  = .L'uomo inglese
The English woman = La donna inglese
and in plural form
The English girls    = le ragazze inglesi
The English boys   = I ragazzi inglesi
The English cars   = le machine inglesi

Also if for instance you meet an Italian woman for the first time
is it correct you say.....italiana lei ?
and would it be ....inglese lei ......... for an English woman

Thanks in advance  for your help

Answer

Hi Ronnie,
the way you are using the adjective "inglese" is correct.

In italian we have 3 types of adjectives:

adjectives with 4 endings
these ones changes in number and gender:
il ragazzo è simpatico
la ragazza è simpatica
i ragazzi sono simpatici
le ragazze sono simpatiche

adjectives with 2 endings
these ones changes only in number, and ends only with "e" (for singular) and "i" (for plural)
il ragazzo è intelligente
la ragazza è intelligente
i ragazzi sono intelligenti
le ragazze sono intelligenti

adjectives with 1 ending
there are few adjectives that have just one ending, most of them are colours
le scarpe sono viola (blu, rosa)

http://italian-grammar.italianforyou.com/morfologia/aggettivi/morfologia-aggettivi.php

"inglese" works as an adjective with 2 endings
instead "italiano" works as an adjective with 4 endings

About asking nationality, you inflected in the right way those adjectives, but you have to use the verb "essere", so you can say:
lei è italiana? / lei è inglese?
or
è italiana lei? / è inglese lei?
the difference is about what you are highlight, in the first one is the nationality, in the second one the person.

I hope this can help

Answer

yeah, you're right.
adjectives and nouns ending in -e turn into -i in the plural (both masculine and feminine).
ex.:
l'uomo francese (the French man=masc.sing.), la donna francese (the French woman =fem.sing.)
gli uomini francesi (the French men= masc. plur.), le donne francesi (the French women)

It's the same for other kinds of adj. and nouns:
adj. FELICE (masc. and fem. sing)/ FELICI (masc. and fem. plur.)= HAPPY
noun  IL PIEDE (masc. sing)/ I PIEDI (masc. plur.)= THE FOOT/FEET
noun LA VOLPE (fem. sing,)/ LE VOLPI (fem. plur.) =  THE FOX/FOXES

Don't forget to put the verb in the question:
Lei è inglese?

I hope this short explanation can help you! ;-)

Answer

The usage of inglese, inglesi in your examples is correct (except "macchina").

As for asking, you can ask "Lei è italiana?" (are you italian?) and she will ask "Lei è inglese?"

Don’t miss out on the opportunity to learn a language from the comfort of your own home. Browse our selection of experienced language tutors and enroll in your first lesson now!