Spanish word

costarricense

Pronunciation

IPA/kostariˈθense/

Meaning

  • noun (m./f.)Costa Rican

Example

Conocí a un costarricense en la universidad.

I met a Costa Rican at the university.

Illustration for costarricense (Costa Rican)

More examples

Una costarricense me recomendó un buen café local.

A Costa Rican woman recommended a good local café to me.

Core concept

Formal label 'costarricense' above a casual 'tico/tica' nickname.

Common phrases

  • una costarricense

    a Costa Rican woman

  • la costarricense

    the Costa Rican woman

Similar words

tico: Colloquial nickname for a Costa Rican (tico/tica), expressing familiarity and local identity.
costarriqueño: Less common demonym form for a Costa Rican, used in some Spanish-speaking areas.

Definition in Spanish

Denota a una persona originaria de Costa Rica o, como adjetivo, aquello perteneciente o vinculado a Costa Rica.

Word origin

The word is derived by appending -ense to Costa Rica, with -ense ultimately from medieval Latin -ensis, producing a formal demonym used as both noun and adjective.

Usage tips

  • In questions about nationality a listener commonly hears ¿Eres costarricense? and many will reply using tico or tica as a self-identifier, so expect both forms in conversation.

Opposites

Word lists with this word