a republic in Central America: gained independence from Spain in 1821; mostly mountainous and volcanic, with extensive forests. Official language: Spanish. Official religion: Roman Catholic. Currency: colón. Capital: San José. Pop: 4 905 769 (2017 est). Area: 50 900 sq km (19 652 sq miles)
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
Cos•ta Ri•ca
(kos′tə rē′kə, kô′stə, kō′-; Sp. kôs′tä rē′kä),USA pronunciation
- Place Namesa republic in Central America, between Panama and Nicaragua. 3,534,174;
19,238 sq. mi. (49,825 sq. km). Cap.: San José.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
'Costa Rica' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
Alajuela
- C, c
- CR
- Central America
- Cordillera de Talamanca
- Costa Rican
- Heredia
- Irazu
- Limón
- Nicoya Peninsula
- Organization of American States
- Papagayo
- Puntarenas
- San Jose
- San José
- San Juan
- Tico
- centimo
- colon
- colón
- céntimo
- little spotted cat
- paradise flower