The Fool
Core meaning: A beginning, trust and freedom; in shadow, recklessness or avoiding responsibility.
Understanding tarot
Meanings of all 78 tarot cards
Short meanings are starting points, not verdicts. The question, position, neighbouring cards and artwork change a card’s tone.
The numbering here follows Rider–Waite–Smith: Strength VIII and Justice XI. Tarot de Marseille usually reverses them.
78 cards
Major Arcana
The Magician
Core meaning: Will, skill and focused resources; in shadow, manipulation or scattered power.
The High Priestess
Core meaning: Intuition, silence and hidden knowledge; in shadow, withdrawal or an ignored inner voice.
The Empress
Core meaning: Abundance, creativity and care; in shadow, smothering or creative blockage.
The Emperor
Core meaning: Structure, responsibility and boundaries; in shadow, rigidity or compulsion to control.
The Hierophant
Core meaning: Tradition, teaching and shared values; in shadow, dogma or blind obedience.
The Lovers
Core meaning: Connection and a choice aligned with values; in shadow, projection, indecision or dependence.
The Chariot
Core meaning: Determination and directed opposing forces; in shadow, haste or lost direction.
Strength
Core meaning: Courage, patience and gentle self-command; in shadow, self-doubt or suppressed anger.
The Hermit
Core meaning: Introspection, experience and one’s own path; in shadow, isolation or endless searching.
Wheel of Fortune
Core meaning: Cycle, turning point and movement; in shadow, resistance to change.
Justice
Core meaning: Truth, balance and consequences; in shadow, harshness or self-deception.
The Hanged Man
Core meaning: Pause, surrender and a new perspective; in shadow, stagnation or needless sacrifice.
Death
Core meaning: Ending, release and fundamental change; in shadow, clinging to the past.
Temperance
Core meaning: Measure, integration and healing; in shadow, excess or opposites that will not blend.
The Devil
Core meaning: Attachment, desire and visible dependencies; in shadow, denial of one’s freedom to choose.
The Tower
Core meaning: Sudden truth and the collapse of false security; in shadow, holding to a failing structure.
The Star
Core meaning: Hope, renewal and honest openness; in shadow, discouragement or disconnection.
The Moon
Core meaning: Uncertainty, dream and deep feeling; in shadow, fear, deception or projection.
The Sun
Core meaning: Vitality, clarity and joy; in shadow, overexposure, ego or forced optimism.
Judgement
Core meaning: Awakening, review and a call to change; in shadow, self-condemnation or refusal.
The World
Core meaning: Completion, wholeness and arrival; in shadow, one unfinished circle or fear of the next step.
Cups
Ace of Cups
Core meaning: Emotional opening, new love and intuition.
Two of Cups
Core meaning: Mutual connection, partnership and meeting as equals.
Three of Cups
Core meaning: Friendship, community and celebration.
Four of Cups
Core meaning: Withdrawal, dissatisfaction and an overlooked offer.
Five of Cups
Core meaning: Grief and loss, with a reminder to notice what remains.
Six of Cups
Core meaning: Memory, nostalgia, generosity and the inner child.
Seven of Cups
Core meaning: Many possibilities, imagination and distinguishing illusion from opportunity.
Eight of Cups
Core meaning: Letting go and leaving in search of deeper fulfilment.
Nine of Cups
Core meaning: Contentment, pleasure and a wish fulfilled.
Ten of Cups
Core meaning: Emotional harmony, belonging and shared happiness.
Page of Cups
Core meaning: Sensitive curiosity, an intuitive message and a creative impulse.
Knight of Cups
Core meaning: A romantic quest, invitation and movement led by feeling.
Queen of Cups
Core meaning: Empathy, deep intuition and compassionate boundaries.
King of Cups
Core meaning: Emotional maturity, diplomacy and calm leadership.
Swords
Ace of Swords
Core meaning: Clarity, truth and a mental breakthrough.
Two of Swords
Core meaning: A stalemate between options and a difficult decision.
Three of Swords
Core meaning: Pain, separation and a truth that can wound and heal.
Four of Swords
Core meaning: Rest, recovery and distance from noise.
Five of Swords
Core meaning: Conflict, victory at any cost and the question of what remains afterward.
Six of Swords
Core meaning: Transition, leaving turbulence and moving toward calmer ground.
Seven of Swords
Core meaning: Strategy, secrecy and the danger of deceiving oneself.
Eight of Swords
Core meaning: Limiting thoughts, felt powerlessness and a possible way out.
Nine of Swords
Core meaning: Worry, guilt and fears that grow larger at night.
Ten of Swords
Core meaning: A painful ending, exhaustion and the chance to release it fully.
Page of Swords
Core meaning: Alert curiosity, new information and an enquiring mind.
Knight of Swords
Core meaning: Speed, directness and an idea moving faster than its consequences.
Queen of Swords
Core meaning: Discernment, honesty and a clear boundary.
King of Swords
Core meaning: Reason, authority and the fairest possible judgement.
Wands
Ace of Wands
Core meaning: A spark, inspiration and the desire to begin.
Two of Wands
Core meaning: Planning, foresight and choosing a direction.
Three of Wands
Core meaning: Expansion, first results and a view beyond the known horizon.
Four of Wands
Core meaning: Homecoming, celebration and a stable shared space.
Five of Wands
Core meaning: Competition, friction and energy that may be productive or scattered.
Six of Wands
Core meaning: Recognition, visible success and responsibility for how it is used.
Seven of Wands
Core meaning: Standing up for a position and defending one’s ground.
Eight of Wands
Core meaning: Rapid movement, messages and events suddenly gaining momentum.
Nine of Wands
Core meaning: Resilience, vigilance and the last reserve of strength.
Ten of Wands
Core meaning: Burden, responsibility and too much carried at once.
Page of Wands
Core meaning: Discovery, good news and fire that is not yet practised.
Knight of Wands
Core meaning: Adventure, passion and the danger of restlessness.
Queen of Wands
Core meaning: Confidence, warmth and magnetic independence.
King of Wands
Core meaning: Vision, leadership and the ability to rally others around a direction.
Pentacles
Ace of Pentacles
Core meaning: Material opportunity, health and a tangible beginning.
Two of Pentacles
Core meaning: Balancing several demands and staying adaptable.
Three of Pentacles
Core meaning: Craft, teamwork and quality built together.
Four of Pentacles
Core meaning: Security, holding on and the line between protection and control.
Five of Pentacles
Core meaning: Hardship, exclusion and help that may be closer than it appears.
Six of Pentacles
Core meaning: Giving and receiving, support and fairness within an imbalance.
Seven of Pentacles
Core meaning: Patience, investment and assessing what deserves further care.
Eight of Pentacles
Core meaning: Practice, diligence and skill built through repetition.
Nine of Pentacles
Core meaning: Independence, enjoyment and earned security.
Ten of Pentacles
Core meaning: Stability, family, legacy and long-term abundance.
Page of Pentacles
Core meaning: Willingness to learn, practical news and a realistic beginning.
Knight of Pentacles
Core meaning: Reliable work, patience and steady progress.
Queen of Pentacles
Core meaning: Grounded care, bodily wisdom and wise use of resources.
King of Pentacles
Core meaning: Responsible abundance, protection and sustainable leadership.
This translation was produced with AI and editorially checked for tarot terminology.