Tarot Glossary: From Major Arcana to Elemental Dignities

The Major Arcana are the 22 named cards of the tarot, running from The Fool at 0 to The World at 21. Cards such as The Lovers, Death and The Star describe big themes: choices, transformation, belief and growth. In older card games they served as trumps, which is why you may still see them called that. When several Major Arcana appear in one reading, the question usually touches something deeper or longer-lasting. Start with the Major Arcana guide to meet them one by one.

The Minor Arcana contains 56 cards split into four suits: Wands, Cups, Swords and Pentacles. Each suit has ten numbered cards, from Ace to Ten, plus four court cards: Page, Knight, Queen and King. Where the Major Arcana speak of big life themes, the Minor Arcana stay close to daily life: a conversation, a purchase, a passing mood. In a reading they often supply practical detail and point to concrete next steps. See the Minor Arcana guide for a full introduction.

The court cards are the 16 "people" of the Minor Arcana: a Page, Knight, Queen and King in each suit. They can stand for you, for someone in your life, or for an attitude you need to adopt. Broadly, Pages are students and messengers, Knights are action in motion, Queens show inner maturity and Kings show outward authority and responsibility. Names vary between decks; the Thoth deck, for example, uses Princess, Prince, Queen and Knight. Learn how to read them in the court cards guide.

The Page is the youngest of the four court cards in each suit. Older decks sometimes call it the Knave, and the Thoth deck replaces it with a Princess. Pages usually show a young figure holding or studying the suit's symbol, signalling curiosity, learning and early stages. In a reading a Page may describe a younger or less experienced person, or simply news, an invitation or a first try; the Page of Cups, for instance, often brings a sweet emotional surprise.

Pip cards are the 40 numbered cards of the Minor Arcana: Ace (one) through Ten in each of the four suits. Some readers count the Aces separately and use "pips" for Two to Ten only. The same number tends to carry a similar rhythm across suits: Fives often bring conflict or loss, while Tens mark the end of a cycle, so number symbolism makes them easier to learn. A hallmark of the Rider-Waite-Smith deck is that every pip shows a scene with people, unlike older decks that simply arrange suit symbols.

Much like playing cards, the Minor Arcana is divided into four suits of 14 cards each. The usual pairing is Wands with fire (action and drive), Cups with water (emotions and relationships), Swords with air (thought and communication) and Pentacles with earth (money, the body and tangible results). Noticing which suit dominates a reading shows you where the heart of the matter lies, and a suit that is missing entirely can be a clue too. Read more in the four suits guide.

The Ace is the "one" of each suit. In the Rider-Waite-Smith deck it usually shows a hand reaching out of a cloud, offering the suit's symbol. Each Ace is a seed of new energy: the Ace of Wands brings fresh drive or an idea, the Ace of Cups opens the heart, the Ace of Swords brings clarity and the Ace of Pentacles offers a practical opportunity. Aces mark a beginning rather than an outcome: the chance is there, but it still needs your care.

The suit of Wands has 14 cards showing living wooden staffs with fresh leaves, a sign of growth and vitality. Linked to fire, Wands speak about drive, creativity, ambition and confidence, and sometimes about impatience or burnout. Many Wands in a reading suggest a fast pace and a call to take the initiative; the adventurous Knight of Wands is a good example. A few decks pair Wands with air instead, so follow the deck author's system when you switch decks.

The suit of Cups uses vessels that hold liquid as its symbol and is linked to water. It covers love, friendship and family bonds, as well as intuition, imagination and inner feelings. When Cups fill a spread, the heart of the question is usually emotional rather than logical; reversed Cups may point to feelings that are stuck or overwhelming. From the Ace of Cups to the Ten of Cups you can follow a feeling from its first spark to fulfilment.

The suit of Swords is symbolised by a double-edged blade that can cut through confusion or cause harm, so these cards talk about both clarity and conflict. Linked to air, Swords deal with thinking, judgement, words, truth and stress. Beginners often find them frightening, the Ten of Swords especially, but they usually ask you to face a problem and decide, rather than predicting disaster. A spread full of Swords calls for calm analysis and honest conversation.

The suit of Pentacles shows golden coins engraved with a five-pointed star. Some decks call them Coins, and the Thoth deck uses Disks. Linked to earth, Pentacles cover income, work, resources, the body and a sense of stability, and they tend to move slowly and reward patience. Searching for "Ten of Coins" on ORAE still finds the Ten of Pentacles. Pentacles describe attitudes and planning, not investment advice.

A standard tarot deck has 78 cards: 22 Major Arcana and 56 Minor Arcana. There are thousands of decks with different art, sizes and colour palettes, yet most follow the structure and symbolism of the Rider-Waite-Smith deck. If you are buying your first deck, choose one whose images are clear and speak to you; the beginner deck guide can help. You can learn the meanings alongside it by browsing all 78 cards.

The Rider-Waite-Smith deck was designed by the occultist Arthur Edward Waite and illustrated by the artist Pamela Colman Smith, then published by Rider in London in 1909. Its great innovation was giving all 56 Minor Arcana cards illustrated scenes, so beginners could read meaning straight from the pictures. Most modern decks and tarot books build on its structure and symbols, and the card meanings on ORAE follow this tradition. Many people simply say "Rider-Waite", though Smith's name is increasingly included to credit her artwork.

The Tarot de Marseille is a historic tarot pattern that was printed widely in France during the 17th and 18th centuries and is named after the port city of Marseille. Its Major Arcana look broadly familiar, but there are key differences from Rider-Waite-Smith: the numbered Minor Arcana show arranged suit symbols rather than scenes, and Justice is VIII while Strength is XI, the reverse of the Waite order. Many European readers prefer it and interpret the pips through number and pattern.

The Thoth Tarot was conceived by the occultist Aleister Crowley and painted by Lady Frieda Harris between 1938 and 1943, though it was not published until 1969. It weaves together astrology, Kabbalah and alchemy, and renames several cards: Strength becomes Lust, Temperance becomes Art, Justice becomes Adjustment and Judgement becomes The Aeon. Its court cards are Princess, Prince, Queen and Knight. Its meanings overlap with Rider-Waite-Smith but are not identical, so it helps to study each system on its own terms.

A card is upright when its figures and title appear the right way up as you turn it over. Upright cards generally express their theme clearly and directly: The Sun upright is joy and success. Upright does not automatically mean good, though; the Three of Swords upright is still heartache. Learning each card's core upright meaning first makes reversals much easier to read later. See upright and reversed cards for more.

A card is reversed when it lands upside down. Reversals are not simply bad news. Common readings include energy that is blocked or delayed, turned inward, overdone or lacking, or the shadow side of the card. Some readers choose not to use reversals at all. On ORAE, each card in a draw is independently given an upright or reversed orientation, with a default 50/50 chance. Learn practical approaches in upright and reversed cards.

Keywords condense a card into a handful of short words: The Fool, for example, is often linked with new beginnings, adventure and freedom. On ORAE every card has five or six keywords for each orientation, all gathered on the tarot cheat sheet. Keywords are ideal for memorising and quick review, but a real reading needs more: combine them with the position, your question and the neighbouring cards to turn single words into a full sentence.

A card's meaning is its symbolic message, drawn from its imagery, number, element and astrology and refined by generations of readers. The same card shifts emphasis by topic: The Lovers speaks of connection and commitment in love, but often of values and choices at work. ORAE gathers upright and reversed meanings for every card across love, career, money and more, and readings are assembled from this written content by rules, not generated by AI.

A significator is a card picked out of the deck before shuffling to represent the querent or the subject of the question. Traditionally it is a court card chosen by age, temperament or star sign; a mature, grounded person might be represented by the King of Pentacles. Waite's version of the Celtic Cross begins by laying down a significator. It can help you focus, but that card can no longer be drawn, so many modern readers skip this step.

Now and then a card flies out of the deck or drops onto the table during shuffling; readers call it a jumper. Opinions differ. Some treat it as an extra message to consider alongside the spread, while others simply return it to the deck. Either approach works as long as you decide your rule in advance and stick to it. Online draws are shuffled by software, so jumpers do not occur, but if one card keeps turning up across readings, see when the same card keeps appearing.

The bottom card is the one lying at the base of the deck after you finish shuffling and cutting; some call it the shadow card. Some readers turn it over after laying the spread as a hint about the hidden background of the question, an unconscious influence or the overall undertone, while others ignore it entirely. It is a personal or school-specific habit rather than a universal rule, so if you use it, read it the same way every time and treat it as supporting detail. ORAE's online readings interpret only the cards in the spread positions.

When a card in a spread leaves you puzzled, you can draw one more and place it beside the original as a clarifier; the first card is then sometimes called the main card. Read the two together: if The Hanged Man is clarified by the Eight of Pentacles, the pause may be a good time to build a skill. Keep it to one or two clarifiers at most, because pulling card after card tends to blur the message rather than sharpen it.

A spread is the format of a reading: how many cards to draw, where to place each one and what each position represents. Spreads range from a single card and the three-card Past, Present, Future to the ten-card Celtic Cross. Bigger spreads reveal more layers but are harder to interpret. Match the spread to the question: keep simple questions small, and save larger layouts for situations with many people or a longer timeline. The spread guide can help you choose.

Each place in a spread has a role, such as "present situation", "obstacle", "advice" or "likely outcome". The same card reads differently depending on where it falls: The Tower in a past position may be an upheaval that has already happened, while in an advice position it can urge you to break an old structure yourself. Read the position first and the card second to keep the message clear. Every spread on ORAE explains its positions.

Shuffling puts the cards into a new random order. Popular methods include the overhand shuffle, the riffle shuffle used with playing cards, and spreading the cards face down on a table and swirling them around, which also turns some cards upside down and creates reversals. Many readers hold their question in mind as they shuffle. On ORAE, every online reading is shuffled with cryptographic-grade randomness, and the random seed is locked before you draw, with its hash shown to you. For hands-on tips, read shuffling and cleansing your deck.

After shuffling, many readers split the deck into two or three piles and stack them back in a new order. Some traditions use the left hand, or ask the person receiving the reading to make the cut, as a way of placing their intention into the cards. There is no fixed rule; what matters is that the gesture marks the moment you turn your attention fully to the question. Online readings are shuffled by the system, so there is no need to cut: simply draw a card or choose a spread.

Drawing means taking cards from the shuffled deck and placing them, in order, into the positions of a spread. With a physical deck you might deal from the top or fan the cards out and choose by feel. Online, the system makes the random selection, and the result is saved before the cards are revealed, so refreshing never re-draws. For a quick message, try Draw One; for fuller context, choose a spread that fits your question.

A well-framed question makes the cards much easier to read. Good tarot questions tend to focus on what you can influence, stay specific and remain open-ended. Instead of "Will he come back?", try "What can I do to look after myself in this relationship right now?" It also helps to avoid asking the same question repeatedly, bundling several issues into one reading or prying into other people's private affairs. See how to ask tarot for more examples.

A yes or no reading usually uses a single card and judges its leaning: upright cards with positive themes tend towards yes, reversed or heavier cards tend towards no, and some cards sit at "not yet" or "it depends on your choice". It suits simple, clear questions, but the answer is a tendency rather than a guarantee. You can check every card's yes/no leaning on the cheat sheet or try a yes or no reading directly.

An either-or reading draws cards for each of two options and compares their likely course, strengths and costs. It is popular for weighing job offers, a move or two different relationships. A typical layout starts with one card for your current situation, then one or two cards each for option A and option B. The cards will not choose for you; they help you see what each path asks of you and what you truly value. Try the A or B spread or start a choice reading.

A timing reading tries to answer "when?". Common methods include matching suits to seasons or speeds (Wands fast, Pentacles slow), treating numbers as days or weeks, and using the twelve-month spread to see which months carry momentum. These systems come from different schools and do not always agree, so treat any result as a rough range. Rather than waiting for a date, use timing cards to plan the rhythm of your own actions. Read more in tarot timing.

Pick a card readings are hugely popular on YouTube and Instagram. A reader draws several piles in advance and interprets each one, then viewers choose the pile that calls to them and read its message. Because everyone sees the same cards, the reading offers general guidance rather than an analysis of your own situation. ORAE's weekly pick a card is refreshed once a week with three piles, A, B and C, and makes a pleasant ritual to start the week.

A daily card practice means drawing one card in the morning, thinking about what it might be pointing to, and looking back in the evening at how the day connected with it. The habit helps you learn all 78 cards through real situations and makes you more aware of your moods and choices. A few lines of notes make it even more rewarding when you look back weeks later. ORAE's daily reading gives you one card that stays the same all day; for practice ideas, see the daily one-card practice guide.

Reading combinations means interpreting neighbouring or co-occurring cards together instead of in isolation. The Lovers next to The Tower, for instance, can suggest a sudden turn in a relationship, while repeated numbers or suits show which theme is being emphasised. When practising, look for what the cards share and where they contrast, then weave them into one story. Browse common card combinations on ORAE, and learn the method in the combinations lesson.

Interpretation is the heart of any reading. Look at which position each card occupies, combine that with the card's meaning and your question, then link all the cards into a story with causes and consequences. Useful techniques include noting the balance of Major and Minor Arcana, the spread of suits, repeated numbers and how neighbouring cards interact. Stay honest and kind, and remember that the cards show possibilities, not verdicts. ORAE builds its interpretations by combining written meanings with rules, without AI; see advanced techniques to go further.

Intuitive reading lets the picture speak first. Notice the colour, gesture or small detail that catches your eye, ask what it reminds you of, then compare that with the traditional meaning. The winding path on The Moon, for example, may remind you of a journey whose end you cannot yet see. Intuition is not random guessing; it grows out of knowing the meanings well. Beginners can learn the keywords with flashcards first, then gradually add their own observations.

A tarot journal records the date, question, cards drawn and your interpretation for each reading, then adds what actually happened later. Looking back, you will notice cards that carry a personal meaning for you and spot habits in how you read. Entries can be short; a few lines are enough. When you are signed in to ORAE, you can revisit past readings in your history and write reflections in the tarot journal. See the tarot journal guide for ideas.

The Celtic Cross is one of the best-known tarot spreads, popularised by A. E. Waite in his 1910 book The Pictorial Key to the Tarot. Six cards form a cross on the left and four form a staff on the right, covering the present, the challenge, the root, the recent past, what is possible, the near future, yourself, your environment, hopes and fears, and the likely outcome. Because it gives so much detail, it suits complex questions rather than simple yes-or-no ones. Try the Celtic Cross spread or read a worked example first.

The four elements come from ancient Greek natural philosophy and became a shared language for Western astrology and tarot. In tarot, fire belongs to Wands (passion and action), water to Cups (emotion), air to Swords (thought) and earth to Pentacles (the material world and the body). Every Major Arcana card also carries an elemental or astrological link; The Emperor, for example, is fiery. Once you know the elements, the logic of the whole deck becomes easier to follow. Read more about the four elements.

Elemental dignities are a reading technique from the Golden Dawn tradition, often used by readers who do not work with reversals. You look at the elements of neighbouring cards: the same element strengthens, fire and water oppose each other, air and earth oppose each other, and the remaining pairs are broadly friendly. A Cups card sitting between two Wands, for example, may find its emotional energy diluted. It is an advanced method, best tried once you are comfortable with the four elements.

Numerology is the tradition of finding meaning in numbers. In tarot, numbers are the thread that runs through the suits: one is a beginning, two is choice and balance, three is growth and collaboration, four is stability, five is conflict and change, and so on up to ten, which completes a cycle and passes the baton. Major Arcana numbers can be compared too: The Magician, card one, and the Wheel of Fortune, card ten, both relate to new starts. Once the numbers click, the 56 Minor Arcana become far easier to remember. Read more on number symbolism.

Astrological correspondences link tarot cards with signs and planets. The most widely used version comes from the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. Twelve Major Arcana cards match the twelve zodiac signs, such as The Emperor with Aries, while the others match planets or elements. Among the Minor Arcana, each numbered card from Two to Ten is assigned to a ten-degree segment of a sign, known as a decan. This lets tarot and astrology be read side by side; explore each sign's card on the zodiac tarot page.

The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn was founded in London in 1888 to study occultism, astrology and Kabbalah. It systematically linked the tarot to the elements, zodiac signs, planets, Hebrew letters and the Tree of Life, and its influence is still felt today. A. E. Waite and Pamela Colman Smith, who created the Rider-Waite-Smith deck, and Aleister Crowley, of the Thoth Tarot, were all members at some point. Much of what modern books say about the elements and tarot and astrology traces back to this tradition.

The Fool's Journey is a popular way to learn the Major Arcana. Picture The Fool, card zero, as a traveller who meets the Magician, the High Priestess, the Empress and others in turn, passing through love, trials, loss and renewal before completing the cycle at The World. The framework turns 22 separate symbols into one coherent story of growth, and it explains why certain cards are often read as stages of life. You can walk the path card by card with the Major Arcana guide.

The Tree of Life is the central diagram of Kabbalah, a tradition of Jewish mysticism. It has ten spheres called Sephiroth, connected by 22 paths. The Golden Dawn assigned the 22 Major Arcana to those paths and their Hebrew letters, and linked the Aces through Tens of the Minor Arcana to the ten Sephiroth. The system underpins esoteric decks such as the Thoth Tarot. You do not need it for everyday readings, but it can deepen your sense of how numbers and Major Arcana fit together; number symbolism is a good bridge.

Oracle cards have no fixed structure. Each deck's creator decides how many cards there are, what they depict and what they say; angel cards, animal cards and affirmation decks are common examples, and many cards print their message right on the face. Tarot, by contrast, has a fixed 78-card framework and a long symbolic tradition. Oracle decks are easy to pick up for daily guidance or meditation, while tarot is better suited to unpacking complex situations. Many people use both; compare them in tarot vs oracle cards.

Lenormand cards are named after Marie Anne Lenormand, a celebrated French fortune-teller of the early 19th century. The standard deck has 36 cards showing everyday objects and animals such as the Rider, Ship, House, Tree and Fox. It is read differently from tarot: reversals are usually ignored, and two or three cards are linked into short phrases, so Ship plus House might mean moving or travelling home. Some readers lay out all 36 cards in a Grand Tableau. Compare different card systems in tarot vs oracle cards.

Angel numbers come from New Age spirituality. When sequences such as 111, 222 or 1111 keep appearing on clocks, licence plates or receipts, some people read them as a nudge or a word of encouragement. The idea draws on numerology and can be paired with tarot: one echoes The Magician's fresh start, two The High Priestess's intuition. Angel numbers have no scientific basis, so they work best as a prompt for self-reflection. Learn more in the angel numbers guide.

The life path number is the best-known idea in numerology. Add every digit of your full date of birth and reduce the total to a single digit from 1 to 9; if 11, 22 or 33 appears along the way, it is often kept as a "master number". Each number has its own personality themes and life lessons, and it can be linked to the Major Arcana card with the same number. Treat it as symbolic, not as fate. Try the life path calculator or read the life path guide.

To find your tarot birth cards, add your birth year, month and day together, then add the digits of the total and keep reducing until the number is 22 or less. That Major Arcana card is your personality card; reducing it further to a single digit gives your soul card. If your personality card is The Sun, 19, your soul card is The Magician, 1. Methods vary between sites, so results can differ. Try the birth card calculator and read about the method.

A common way to find your year card is to add your birth month and day to the year you want to look at, then reduce the total to 22 or less in the same way as a birth card. The resulting Major Arcana card describes that year's theme for growth: a Hermit year, for instance, may favour study, reflection and time alone. Your year card changes every year, while your birth card stays the same, so the two make good companions. Find yours with the year card calculator, or explore the 2027 yearly reading.

Mercury retrograde happens three or four times a year and lasts around three weeks each time. Seen from Earth, Mercury appears to move backwards across the sky, though this is only an optical effect. Astrology links Mercury with communication, travel, paperwork and technology, so retrograde periods are traditionally seen as a time to double-check details and stay flexible. In tarot, Mercury corresponds to The Magician. You can use these weeks for review and reflection; see tarot for Mercury retrograde.

The Moon moves from new to full and back again roughly every 29.5 days. In many spiritual traditions the new moon represents beginnings, a good time to set intentions, while the full moon represents culmination and release, a time to review what has grown and let go of what no longer helps. In tarot, The Moon and The High Priestess both carry lunar imagery. ORAE's moon phase page suggests a card, a spread and reflection questions for each phase; see also new moon and full moon tarot.

AI tarot uses artificial intelligence, such as a large language model, to write an interpretation on the spot from the cards drawn and the question asked. It can respond flexibly, but the same cards may be described differently each time, and it is harder to trace where a statement came from. ORAE does not use AI. Every card's meanings are written in advance and readings are assembled from them by fixed rules, so the same card in the same position always produces a consistent interpretation. Compare the two approaches in AI tarot vs rule-based readings.