Instructions for reading the meanings of the 78 Rider-Waite Tarot cards

Why should we start from this section?

The card meaning section is very suitable for you to look at when you have drawn a card and want to quickly understand its basic meaning.

This content brings together the common meanings of the 22 Major Arcana cards, making it easy for you to look up each card, then continue to learn related meanings or appropriate spreads.

Cards need to be learned first

Core themes: Start new, take risks, trust intuition.

• Position: Open mind, ready for challenges.
• Reversed: Hesitation, or acting too hastily without thinking.

Core themes: Choices, deep connections, shared values.

• Position: Mutual feedback, upgrading relationships, confirming cooperation.
• Overturned: Incompatibility of values, unclearness or refusal to commit.

Core theme: Ending the old cycle, not disaster.

• Position: Active or inevitable transition, stepping into something new.
• Reversed: Prolongation, refusal to change, procrastination.

Core theme: Restoration of faith, hope, and new rhythm.

• Position: Hope and repair, restore trust.
• Reversed: Disappointment, loss of confidence, slow recovery.

Core theme: Turn ideas into action, control situations.

• Position: Be proactive, integrate resources, promote progress.
• Reversed: Excessive control, failure to execute, direction deviation.

Core theme: Feeling deeper than words, observations, hidden information.

• Position: Intuition, observation, secret not yet revealed.
• Overturned: Deeply immersed, misunderstood, too conservative.

Core Themes: Control, focus, achieving results.

• Position: Self-control, clear direction, getting results.
• Reversed: Too strong, out of control, chaotic rhythm.

Core theme: Stabilize yourself, not through violence, but from within.

• Position: Patience, self-control, flexible repair.
• Reversed: Low energy, self-doubt, uncontrollable emotions.

Core theme: Haunted, bound, seems unable to escape.

• Position: Desire for amplification, limited relationships.
• Reversed: Realize the problem, try to get rid of it.

Core Themes: Unable to see clearly, anxiety, projection.

• Position: Blurred, worried, projected.
• Flip: The fog slowly cleared, clarity gradually returned.

Core theme: Clear, strong, positive signal.

• Position: Success, publicity, vitality.
• Overturned: Delay, temperature drop, good news obscured.

Core theme: Review and decision making, enlightenment, upgrade.

• Position: Enlightenment, remembering, upgrading yourself.
• Reversed: Procrastination, self-doubt, unwillingness to face. A useful check is to name the visible action on the card before choosing advice. When several cards repeat a theme, treat the pattern as emphasis rather than certainty. For a cleaner reading, translate the symbol into one observable choice or behavior. If the card feels abstract, ask what it changes in the next small decision. The strongest interpretation usually connects image, position, and question in one sentence.

Continue learning more

Card meanings, spreads, questions, and instructions should be learned in conjunction with each other. This will help you ask clear questions and gain deeper understanding.

Reference source: tianjiyao.com — Comprehensive dictionary of Tarot meanings: Entering high-frequency card meanings and interpretation main-reverse positions When several cards repeat a theme, treat the pattern as emphasis rather than certainty.

What to try next

Pick one question from this guide and pull a single card on Melaap. Write one sentence about what surprised you — that friction is often where the reading begins. For a cleaner reading, translate the symbol into one observable choice or behavior.

In practice, begin with the position's job, then let the card image sharpen the answer.