TICO-TALK 
OR 
COSTARRIQUEÑISMOS 
At CPI you will learn a standard, universal form of Spanish that is used throughout the Latino world.  But since each Spanish speaking country has its own slang, you can also learn some modismos (slang words) from Costa Rica.  If you want to speak Spanish like a Tico, you will need to learn at least a few of these expressions.  After you have mastered the basics in Spanish it's fun to be able experiment with the richness of the Spanish spoken in Costa Rica!
COSTARRIQUEÑISMOS
acharà
What a pity!
agarrado
miser
agüevado
bored
andar de tanda
bar-crawling
batear
to make wild guesses
brete
work
cada muerte de obispo
once in a blue moon
carajada
thing or situation
con toda la pata
in good form 
¡Cierre el pico!
Shut up!
choque ese hueso
shake my hand
choza
house
chunche
stuff
diay
hey
dolor de jupa
headache
embarcarse
to take a risk
empuncharse
to work hard
estar de chicha
to be angry
estar de goma
to be hung over
estar hecho leña
to be in a bad state
estar en la luna
to daydream
fregar
to bother
grosero
rude
güila
kid
hablar paja
to talk nonsense
hacerse el chancho
to not pay attention
irsele la onda
to forget
jale
let's go
joder
to bother
lancear
to seduce
llegar a la hora del burro
to arrive late
mae
dude
meter la pata
to put one's foot in it
meter una yuca
to tell a lie 
minche
fistfight
no darle la gana
to not want to
no entender ni papa
to not understand anything
no es vara 
it's not a lie
ojalà
if only/ god granted
pasar la brocha
to have an ulterior motive
pinche
stingy
por si las moscas
just in case
pura vida
perfect
¡Que tirada!
What a mess!
sacarse el clavo
to get it off one's chest
suave
wait
salado
too bad
ser chineado
to be spoiled
¡Soque!
Hurry up!
 tirito
just a moment
¡Tome chichi!
Take that!


 


Love Costa Rica, Costa Rica Travel Exchange 1-800-256-0124



For more information, rates and reservations:

Costa Rica Travel ExchangeTM!

1-800-256-0124

123 David Street
New Orleans, Louisiana 70119

or e-mail us at: CostaTravl@aol.com

Return to CPI Home page