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O rapaz é inglês?

O rapaz é inglês?
Is the boy English?
From Lesson 3:Yes/no questions and question words (quem, o que)·Portuguese (Portugal)

Breakdown of O rapaz é inglês?

ser
to be
o rapaz
the boy
inglês
English

Questions & Answers about O rapaz é inglês?

Why doesn't the verb come first like it does in English ("Is the boy...")?
In Portuguese, yes/no questions use the exact same word order as regular statements. To turn the statement O rapaz é inglês (The boy is English) into a question, you simply raise your pitch at the end of the sentence when speaking, and add a question mark when writing.
Why isn't inglês capitalized like "English" is in English?
In Portuguese, adjectives for nationalities and languages are written in lowercase. You only capitalize them if they are the very first word in a sentence.
Why do we use é here instead of está for "is"?
We use é (from the verb ser) because nationalities and origins are considered permanent traits in Portuguese. The other verb for "to be", estar (where está comes from), is used for temporary states like locations or moods.
If I wanted to ask this about a girl, what would change?
You would change the article, the noun, and the adjective to match the feminine gender: A rapariga é inglesa? Nationalities ending in -ês in the masculine usually add an -a and drop the accent to form the feminine.

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