Costa Rican

adjective

Cos·​ta Ri·​can ˌkȯ-stə-ˈrē-kən How to pronounce Costa Rican (audio)
ˌkō-
: of, relating to, or characteristic of Costa Rica or its people
Costa Rican noun
plural Costa Ricans

Examples of Costa Rican in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Costa Rican linesman Berny Ulloa wasn’t having any of that. — Michael Cox, New York Times, 3 June 2026 The company’s downfall came not from its ties to the Costa Rican underworld but from Pughsley and the others’ failure to pay taxes. — Keith O’Brien, New Yorker, 25 June 2026 Nearby Playa Naranjo serves as a gateway, with a ferry service linking the peninsula to Puntarenas and the wider Costa Rican coast. — Spencer Elliott, Forbes.com, 6 June 2026 To estimate how many parasitoid wasp species in the Costa Rican national park have evaded detection, the researchers took cues from infectious disease tracking. — Elizabeth Anne Brown, Scientific American, 1 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for Costa Rican

Word History

First Known Use

1849, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of Costa Rican was in 1849

Rhymes for Costa Rican

See All Rhymes for Costa Rican

Browse Nearby Words

Costa Rica
Costa Rican
Costata
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Costa Rican.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Costa%20Rican. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

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