Neither La Extra nor La Teja newspapers are examples of good journalism, but can serve as useful tools for learning Costa Rican slang. Both papers are famous for their use of sensationalism to attract readers.

Why does one need to learn the local lingo? Because many of the Costa Ricans use it and you may be lost at times without it.

Here are more words and expressions I found in both publications:

Agarrarse como mono en ventolero – literally means to grab hold like a monkey in the face of a strong wind. What it means in slang is to hold on tight to your money because you are tight-fisted or cheap.
Cachetes – usually refers to someone’s cheeks but it can also refer to someone’s buttock
Chuzo – any car that has been modified or fixed. It can mean any object that is good quality like a state of the art computer
Desampa – short for the town of Desamparados which is south of downtown San José
Hacerse la barba – means to shave in Costa Rica. Afeitarse or rasurarse are the correct verbs to use.
Jalarle las orejas – literally to pull someone’s ears but it can also mean to scold someone.
Jupa – means head. Cabeza is the correct word. Jupón is a person with a big head or someone is stubborn.
Los niños y los borrachos siempre dicen la verdad – Children and drunks always tell the truth.
Menear, mover el esqueleto, quemar callos or pegarse una bailadita all mean to dance in Costa Rican slang. Bailar is the correct way to express this idea.
Pasar a la vida seria and dar el sí mean to get married. We also say echarse la soga al cuello which means to hang oneself by getting married. Casarse is the correct verb for getting married.
Pelear con el cepillo – to fight with your hairbrush which really means you need to comb your hair. Pelear con la navajilla (razor) means you need a shave. Pelear con la escoba means you need to sweep with a broom.
Oxidado – literally means “rusty.” In figurative terms in means lacking practice or rusty.
Sacarse el clavo – to make up for one’s mistake or get it off your chest
Tontico/a – word play which Costa Ricans use to mean a stupid tico/a (Costa Rican). It is a combination of tonto/a (stupid) and tico/a (slang for Costa Rican).
Torta – a srew up or big problem. Jalarse una torta means to get into trouble. A tortero is a person who messes or screws up
Tranqui – tranquil or relaxed. It comes form the word tranquilo.
Tufo – a bad odor