Sidebar #19 - The Singular "You" in Costa Rican Spanish: Tú, Usted y Vos

For me, and most people who are taught Spanish in the United States, the pronoun “tú” is used to address someone else in second person. Tú is considered the informal, singular “you”, and is fairly ubiquitous in the Spanish-speaking world. However, although Ticos would understand you if you used it, “tú” is not commonplace in Costa Rica. Rather, most Ticos default to “usted”, or the formal, singular “you” when addressing someone. “Usted” uses the same conjugation as él or ella, or when someone is referenced in the third person. Even when Ticos talk to kids and pets, they are most often addressed with a command in the formal, “usted” form.

Adding another wrinkle to this phenomenon, Costa Rica, as well as a handful of other countries, occasionally use a form called “vos”. You might have heard of “vosotros”, which is used exclusively in Spain, but “vos" is different. Vos is pretty much interchangeable with “tú” and has a similar conjugation. (To conjugate in the present tense, simply add an accent on the final vowel of a verb. Verbs ending in -ar become ás, -er verbs become, és, and -ir verbs are ís.) Vos is most commonly used informally between people who have a close relationship, particularly initiated from someone older to someone younger. I also see vos used frequently in advertisements in Costa Rica. As a nonnative speaker, I seldom use vos and have found it better to default to using usted when referring to someone in the second person. I’d rather err on the side of being too formal than not showing someone sufficient respect.

Side note(s): the word “mae” is exclusive to Costa Rican Spanish and is another way to refer to someone else. (I’d say it’s most similar to “dude” or “bro”. However, it is very very informal and should really only be used with someone you are close friends with. Additionally, the thumbnail of this blog includes verbs conjugated in the vos form.