Simply Tarot archive
Tarot Card Meanings
Explore the language of all 78 cards
Browse clear, grounded Tarot card meanings for the complete deck. Search for a specific card or explore the Major Arcana, Minor Arcana and four suits to understand each card’s themes, symbolism and place within a reading.
Find a card
Search Tarot card meanings
Enter a card name or suit to search the Simply Tarot archive.
You can also browse by Arcana or suit below.
The complete deck
Two parts of one symbolic language
The Tarot deck contains 78 cards organised into the Major and Minor Arcana. The Major Arcana explores the larger archetypal experiences of life. The Minor Arcana follows the thoughts, emotions, ambitions, relationships and practical circumstances through which those experiences are lived.
The larger journey
From The Fool’s openness and inexperience to The World’s completion, the Major Arcana describes the lessons, challenges and turning points that shape a journey through life.
Explore Major Arcana meanings →The everyday journey
The Minor Arcana brings Tarot into recognisable experience. Its four suits explore how we think and communicate, feel and connect, act and pursue, build and protect.
Explore Minor Arcana meanings →Major Arcana
Tarot meanings for life’s larger experiences
The 22 Major Arcana cards represent the significant stages, choices, changes and lessons encountered through life. A Major Arcana card can bring an archetypal theme into focus, helping you recognise the larger experience within a particular question or situation.
Explore every card from The Fool to The World, including its core meaning, archetype, symbolism and the different ways it may appear in a reading.
Browse all 22 Major Arcana cards →
Minor Arcana
Explore Tarot card meanings by suit
Each Minor Arcana suit follows a journey from the potential of the Ace through the numbered cards and into the Court. Choose a suit to explore its 14 cards and the area of life they help describe.
Using the archive
How to use Tarot card meanings in a reading
A card meaning gives you a reliable foundation, not a fixed sentence to repeat in every reading. The question, spread position, surrounding cards and details you notice help determine which part of that meaning is most relevant.
Begin with the foundation
Read the card’s core meaning, archetype, suit and number before narrowing the interpretation.
Return to the question
Consider the card through the particular subject and the role assigned by its spread position.
Read it in context
Notice how the image and surrounding cards support, oppose or develop the card’s meaning.
Continue learning
Turn card meanings into confident reading
Use the archive as a reference, then develop your understanding through structure, reflection, spreads and regular practice.
Helpful questions
Questions about Tarot card meanings
Do Tarot cards have one fixed meaning?
No. Each card has an established foundation, but its most relevant meaning depends on the question, its spread position, the surrounding cards and the details that stand out within the image.
Should I memorise all 78 Tarot card meanings?
You do not need to memorise every meaning before you begin reading. Learn the deck’s structure, build familiarity with the cards and use a trusted reference while experience gradually strengthens recognition.
What is the difference between Major and Minor Arcana?
The Major Arcana describes larger archetypal experiences and stages of life. The Minor Arcana explores how those themes appear through everyday thought, emotion, action, relationships and practical circumstances.
Can the same Tarot card mean different things?
Yes. A card retains its core theme, but that theme can appear differently depending on the person, situation and question. Context makes the meaning more precise rather than replacing it.