- A standard tarot deck has 78 cards split into the 22-card Major Arcana (big life themes) and the 56-card Minor Arcana (everyday situations across four suits).
- Learn the Major Arcana first — mastering these 22 archetypal cards gives you a solid interpretive foundation before tackling the full deck.
- Beginners should start with a single daily card draw and a three-card spread before progressing to more complex layouts like the Celtic Cross.
- Reversed cards are optional — skip them entirely until upright meanings feel genuinely comfortable, then choose one consistent interpretive approach.
- Keeping a tarot journal and trusting your immediate intuitive response are the two habits that accelerate learning faster than any other practice.
Whether you’ve just picked up your first deck or you’re trying to make sense of all 78 cards, understanding tarot card meanings for beginners can feel like learning a new language overnight. The good news? It’s far more approachable than it looks. This guide walks you through everything — the structure of a tarot deck, what every suit and archetype represents, how to handle reversed cards, and which spreads to start with — so you can build a genuine, confident reading practice from the ground up.
What Tarot Cards Are and Their History
Tarot cards began not as a mystical tool but as a perfectly ordinary card game. The earliest known tarot decks — called tarocchi — were created in northern Italy in the early 15th century for playing trick-taking games among the nobility. It wasn’t until the late 18th century that French occultists began associating the cards with esoteric philosophy, astrology, and the Kabbalah, transforming them into the divinatory system we recognise today.
The most influential modern deck, the Rider-Waite-Smith (often just called the Rider-Waite), was published in 1909. Illustrated by Pamela Colman Smith under the direction of Arthur Edward Waite, it gave illustrated scenes to every one of the 78 cards — including the numbered pip cards — making interpretation dramatically more accessible. Nearly every beginner deck sold today is either a direct reprint or a creative reimagining of this foundational design.
Tarot sits within a broader family of card-based games and practices. If you enjoy the strategic depth found in games like contract Bridge and its rules, you’ll appreciate that tarot, too, rewards careful study, pattern recognition, and a willingness to revisit fundamentals as your knowledge deepens.
The 78-Card Tarot Deck Structure
Every standard tarot deck contains exactly 78 cards, divided into two main sections: the Major Arcana and the Minor Arcana. Understanding this structure is the single most useful thing you can do before you start memorising individual card meanings.
Major Arcana (22 cards)
Numbered 0 through 21, these cards represent major life themes, archetypes, and spiritual lessons. When they appear in a reading, they carry extra weight — think of them as the headline, not the supporting story.
Minor Arcana (56 cards)
Divided into four suits of 14 cards each, the Minor Arcana covers everyday events, emotions, and situations. Each suit runs from Ace (1) through to 10, followed by four court cards: Page, Knight, Queen, and King.
Here’s a quick structural overview:
| Section | Number of Cards | Focus Area | Weight in a Reading |
|---|---|---|---|
| Major Arcana | 22 | Life themes, archetypes, soul lessons | High — major influences |
| Minor Arcana — Cups | 14 | Emotions, relationships, intuition | Medium — everyday feelings |
| Minor Arcana — Wands | 14 | Passion, creativity, career drive | Medium — everyday actions |
| Minor Arcana — Pentacles | 14 | Money, work, physical world | Medium — everyday material concerns |
| Minor Arcana — Swords | 14 | Thoughts, conflict, communication | Medium — everyday mental activity |
Major Arcana: The 22 Cards and Their Meanings
The Major Arcana tells the story of a journey — often called The Fool’s Journey — from naïve beginnings (The Fool, card 0) through spiritual completion (The World, card 21). Learning these 22 cards first gives you a strong interpretive backbone for every reading.
Cards 0–7: The Outer World
- 0 – The Fool: New beginnings, spontaneity, leaps of faith.
- 1 – The Magician: Willpower, skill, manifesting your intentions.
- 2 – The High Priestess: Intuition, mystery, inner knowing.
- 3 – The Empress: Abundance, fertility, nurturing creativity.
- 4 – The Emperor: Authority, structure, disciplined leadership.
- 5 – The Hierophant: Tradition, institutions, spiritual guidance.
- 6 – The Lovers: Relationships, values, meaningful choices.
- 7 – The Chariot: Determination, victory through control.
Cards 8–14: The Inner World
- 8 – Strength: Courage, patience, taming inner forces.
- 9 – The Hermit: Solitude, soul-searching, inner wisdom.
- 10 – Wheel of Fortune: Cycles, destiny, turning points.
- 11 – Justice: Fairness, truth, legal matters.
- 12 – The Hanged Man: Suspension, new perspectives, surrender.
- 13 – Death: Endings, transformation, inevitable change (rarely literal).
- 14 – Temperance: Balance, moderation, patience.
Cards 15–21: The Spiritual World
- 15 – The Devil: Bondage, materialism, shadow self.
- 16 – The Tower: Sudden upheaval, revelation, necessary destruction.
- 17 – The Star: Hope, renewal, calm after the storm.
- 18 – The Moon: Illusion, anxiety, the subconscious.
- 19 – The Sun: Joy, success, vitality.
- 20 – Judgement: Reflection, reckoning, a calling to rise.
- 21 – The World: Completion, integration, wholeness.
Minor Arcana: Cups, Wands, Pentacles and Swords
Once you’ve got a feel for the Major Arcana, the Minor Arcana fills in the day-to-day texture of a reading. Each of the four suits corresponds to a classical element and a particular area of life.
Cups (Water — Emotions and Relationships)
Cups deal with love, feelings, intuition, and connection. The Ace of Cups signals a new emotional beginning; the Ten of Cups represents joyful family harmony. When you see a reading dominated by Cups, emotions are at the centre of the situation.
Wands (Fire — Passion and Action)
Wands are energetic and forward-moving, governing creativity, ambition, career, and adventure. The Three of Wands suggests expansion and foresight; the Nine of Wands urges perseverance despite exhaustion.
Pentacles (Earth — Money and the Material World)
Pentacles cover finances, career, health, and practical matters. The Ace of Pentacles heralds new financial opportunities; the Five of Pentacles highlights financial hardship or feelings of exclusion.
Swords (Air — Thought and Conflict)
Swords are the sharpest suit — dealing with intellect, truth, conflict, and communication. They can cut to the heart of a matter but often indicate challenge. The Two of Swords speaks of indecision; the Ace of Swords of mental clarity and breakthrough.
Court Cards: Pages, Knights, Queens and Kings
Court cards are often the trickiest part of tarot for beginners, and that’s completely normal — they represent people, personality types, or the energy you might need to embody in a situation. Each rank has a consistent character across all four suits.
- Pages: Youthful, curious, student energy. Often messages, new ideas, or a young person in your life. (e.g., Page of Cups = an emotionally open, dreamy individual.)
- Knights: Action-oriented, driven, sometimes impulsive. They charge ahead — with varying degrees of wisdom. (e.g., Knight of Wands = passionate but restless.)
- Queens: Mature, inward power, mastery of their suit’s element expressed through nurturing or authority. (e.g., Queen of Swords = intellectually sharp and direct.)
- Kings: Outward mastery, leadership, and the fullest external expression of each suit’s energy. (e.g., King of Pentacles = successful, stable, generous with resources.)
A helpful tip: when a court card confuses you, ask yourself whether it represents you, someone else in your life, or a quality you need to develop right now. One of those three will usually click.
Reading Reversed Tarot Cards
A reversed card (also called an inverted card) is one that appears upside-down when drawn. Whether to read reversals is entirely up to you — many experienced readers work exclusively with upright cards, especially when starting out.
If you do choose to read reversals, here are the three most common interpretive approaches:
- Blocked or weakened energy: The upright meaning is present but obstructed or operating at reduced capacity.
- Internalised energy: The card’s themes are playing out privately or unconsciously rather than in the outer world.
- Shadow or opposite meaning: The reversed card reflects the darker, more challenging side of its upright meaning.
As a beginner, there’s absolutely no shame in skipping reversals entirely for your first few months. Master the upright meanings first — add reversals once those feel genuinely solid. Tarot is a skill-building practice, not unlike mastering strategy in any complex card game; just as you’d learn fundamental rules before advanced tactics in poker strategy, build your tarot foundations before layering in extra complexity.
Common Beginner Tarot Spreads to Try
A spread is simply the pattern in which you lay cards out, with each position holding a specific meaning. Start small — a sprawling Celtic Cross on your first week is a recipe for overwhelm.
1. Single-Card Daily Draw
Draw one card each morning and ask: What do I need to know or focus on today? Journal your thoughts and check in at the end of the day. This is the fastest way to build familiarity with the cards.
2. Three-Card Spread
Highly flexible. Common three-card configurations include:
- Past / Present / Future
- Situation / Action / Outcome
- Mind / Body / Spirit
3. Five-Card Horseshoe Spread
A natural step up from three cards, covering: Past, Present, Hidden Influences, Recommended Action, and Likely Outcome. It’s a well-rounded mid-level spread that doesn’t require memorising dozens of positions.
4. Celtic Cross (When You’re Ready)
The classic ten-card spread gives a thorough picture of a situation — covering present circumstances, challenges, foundations, hopes, fears, and outcome. Tackle this once your single-card and three-card readings feel comfortable.
For a bit of fun variety in your practice sessions, you could even invent your own spreads — it’s a bit like creating house rules in a card game. Speaking of laid-back card-game enjoyment, if you fancy something different between tarot sessions, Ultimate Golf Solitaire offers a satisfying solo card challenge.
Tips for Developing Your Tarot Reading Practice
Building a genuine tarot practice takes time, consistency, and a fair bit of self-compassion. Here are the habits that make the biggest difference:
- Keep a tarot journal. Write down your card draws, your initial impressions, and what actually unfolded. Over time, this becomes your most personalised reference guide.
- Trust your first instinct. Before reaching for a guidebook, pause and notice what emotion or image strikes you immediately. Intuition is a skill — it improves with use.
- Study one card at a time. Rather than trying to memorise all 78 at once, spend a full day or week sitting with a single card. Place it on your desk, notice when its themes show up in daily life.
- Don’t worry about being wrong. Tarot is a reflective tool, not a pass/fail exam. There are no readings that are factually incorrect — only ones that are more or less resonant.
- Choose a deck that speaks to you visually. The Rider-Waite is brilliant for learning, but if the art doesn’t engage you, try a deck whose imagery genuinely excites you. You’ll connect with it far more readily.
- Practise on yourself first. Reading for others adds social pressure. Get comfortable with your own questions and situations before offering readings to friends and whānau.
Frequently asked questions
How long does it take to learn tarot card meanings?
Most beginners gain a working familiarity with the 22 Major Arcana cards within a few weeks of daily practice. The full 78-card deck usually takes three to six months to feel comfortable with, though seasoned readers never really stop learning — new layers of meaning emerge with every reading you do. Consistency matters far more than how quickly you memorise.
Do I need to be psychic to read tarot cards?
Not at all. Tarot works primarily as a reflective and intuitive tool — it prompts you to consider perspectives and possibilities you might not have consciously examined. Many readers describe it as structured self-reflection rather than fortune-telling. You don’t need special abilities; you need curiosity, practice, and a willingness to sit thoughtfully with what the cards bring up.
What is the best tarot deck for beginners?
The Rider-Waite-Smith deck is almost universally recommended for beginners because every card — including the numbered pip cards — features a fully illustrated scene that guides interpretation. The Radiant Rider-Waite and the Universal Waite are cleaner reprints of the same system. Once you’re comfortable with RWS symbolism, exploring other decks becomes much easier and more rewarding.
Is it bad luck to buy your own tarot cards?
This is a popular myth with no grounding in tarot tradition — you can absolutely buy your own deck, and most serious practitioners do exactly that. The idea that cards must be gifted likely arose as a way to make tarot feel more mysterious. What matters is that you connect with your deck, handle it regularly, and approach it with genuine respect and intention.
Can tarot cards predict the future?
Tarot reflects current energies, patterns, and possibilities rather than fixed outcomes. Think of a reading as a snapshot of the most likely trajectory based on present circumstances — circumstances that can always shift with new choices. Most experienced readers emphasise tarot as a decision-making aid and self-awareness tool rather than a precise predictive system. The future remains gloriously open.
