Thread: Costa Rican slang

I just found (at a German delicatessen!) a very good dictionary of Costa Rican slang called A Lo Tico. (tico = costarricense) It was written by Alf A. Giebler Simonet (ISBN: 9977-12794-8, Grupo Deseños Impresos, SA). I paid C$2500 (about USD$5.00). It has 216 pages. In addition to slang, it discusses how Ticos abbreviate words (porfa = por favor, te =teléfono, re = reunión), common expressions (Más asustado que monja con atraso), how to give directions (in a country without street signs and house numbers), and makes other interesting observations. It's not as scholarly as the old standard Nuevo Diccionario de Costarriqueñismos by Miguel A. Quesada Pacheco, but it appears to me to be much more current. No, I have no idea how and where you can get a copy.

¡Pura vida!

Another great book is Diccionario de Palabrotas y Coloquialismos Ticos: Con traducción y equivalentes en inglés, (Dictionary of Costa Rican Slang: With a translation and equivalents in English) by Costa Rican author José Antonio González Ugalde. The book is for sale at the major bookstores in the country. It is also on Amazon in paperback or kindle. Check it out, you're gonna like it.

I will be sure to look for it. Haven't seen it on the shelf, but it must be somewhere. Thanks, mae. Or should I say "mop"? LOL

(Más asustado que monja con atraso) - hilarious expression!

chris.r I don´t understand. What´s funny about a late nun?

Amayo, late....as of in Pregnant, not a good thing for a nun!

hahaha.... no I don´t suppose it is. Thanks for clearing that one up for me chris.r!

When I was traveling in Argentina I picked up a book called "che boludo" which explained Argentine slang. Funny stuff!