Ways to say it
| Spanish | IPA | Note |
|---|---|---|
| costarricense | /kostariˈθense/ /kostariˈsense/ |
masculine |
| costarriqueño | /kostariˈkeɲo/ | masculine |
| tico | /ˈtiko/ | colloquial, masculine |
This term can be used as a noun to refer to a person from Costa Rica or as an adjective to describe things pertaining to Costa Rica.
Which one should you use?
While costarricense and costarriqueño are both used to refer to a Costa Rican, tico is a colloquial term used specifically for a Costa Rican male.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
costarricense is a formal term used as both a noun and an adjective. In contrast, tico is a colloquial and affectionate way to refer to a Costa Rican person.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The form costarriqueño changes its ending to -a to form the feminine version costarriqueña. For the colloquial term, the feminine plural form is ticas.
How do you pronounce it?
/kostariˈθense/
When do people say it?
A popular Costa Rican expression is Pura vida, which means "pure life" or "all is well." In some regions of Costa Rica, the slang term tuanis is used to describe someone or something that is great.
Did you know?
- The colloquial term tico is actually a nickname derived from the common use of the diminutive suffix '-tico' in the country's speech. It functions as a shorthand for the identity of the people.
- Costa Ricans often use the phrase Pura vida not just to describe the 'pure life', but as a greeting, a farewell and a way to say 'thank you'.
- The word costarricense is gender-neutral and does not change its ending whether it refers to a man or a woman.
Examples in context
- Juan era costarricense, mientras que Pierre y Jack eran de Réunion y Sudáfrica respectivamente.Juan was Costa Rican, whilst Pierre and Jack came from Réunion and South Africa respectively.This sentence shows how to contrast the nationality of one person with others using costarricense.Tatoeba #1614639 by hayastan, translation #877484 by LittleBoy
- Alberto es de Costa Rica. Es costarricense.Alberto is from Costa Rica. He is Costa Rican.This sentence shows how to state that someone is from Costa Rica and identify them as costarricense.Tatoeba #1110361 by alexmarcelo, translation #1110360 by frpzzd
- Adriana es de Costa Rica. Es costarricense.Adriana is from Costa Rica. She is Costa Rican.This sentence shows how to identify a female as costarricense.Tatoeba #1110365 by alexmarcelo, translation #1110364 by tchrspet1
- Mi amigo es costarricense.My friend is Costa Rican
- El embajador costarricense de Costa Rica asistió a la conferencia.The Costa Rican ambassador from Costa Rica attended the conference
- Mis amigos son ticosMy friends are Costa Ricans
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Mateo and Elena are talking about a new coworker at the office.
- Mateo¿Él es costarricense?Is he Costa Rican?
- ElenaSí, él es costarricense.Yes, he is Costa Rican.
- MateoÉl es muy amable.He is very kind.
- ElenaEs cierto, Mateo.That is true, Mateo.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “costa rican” translations and entries costarricense, costarriqueño, tico, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries costarricense, costarriqueño, tico, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
