Card Meaning

The Five of Cups signifies grief, loss, and emotional disappointment. It reflects the pain of letting go or unfulfilled expectations. This card encourages acknowledging and processing emotions while focusing on what remains. Beware of dwelling on regret or failing to see the potential for healing.

Card Themes

  • Loss and Grief
    Reflects disappointment or emotional setbacks.
  • Perspective Shift
    Encourages focusing on what remains rather than what’s lost.
  • Emotional Recovery
    Highlights the potential for healing and renewal.
  • Letting Go
    Represents moving past regret and sorrow.
  • Dwelling on the Past
    Warns against getting stuck in negativity.

Card Symbolism

  • The Figure
    A cloaked figure mourns over three spilled cups, symbolizing loss and grief.
  • The Standing Cups
    Two cups remain upright, representing hope and opportunities still present.
  • The Bridge
    A bridge in the background symbolizes the path to moving forward.
  • The River
    The flowing river represents the passage of time and emotional healing.
Five Of Cups

UPRIGHT

Five Of Cups

REVERSED

Upright Meaning

When drawn upright, The Five of Cups signifies loss, grief, and emotional disappointment. It reflects a time of mourning what has been lost, whether it’s a relationship, opportunity, or personal expectation. This card encourages you to honor your feelings and process your emotions fully. At the same time, it reminds you to look beyond the spilled cups and focus on what remains, offering hope and the potential for recovery. The Five of Cups speaks to resilience and finding strength through adversity. However, it cautions against dwelling on the past, resisting healing, or failing to see opportunities for renewal.

Upright Keywords:
Loss, Grief, Disappointment, Regret, Failure, Bereavement, Sadness, Past focus, Emotional pain, Recovery

Reversed Meaning

When drawn reversed, the Five of Cups represents healing, forgiveness, and emotional recovery. It reflects the process of letting go of grief, regret, or disappointment and finding hope in what remains. This card encourages you to focus on rebuilding your emotional foundation and recognizing the potential for growth through adversity. However, it may also indicate difficulty fully releasing past pain or a tendency to dwell on what could have been. The Five of Cups reversed invites you to embrace acceptance and gratitude, trusting that brighter days are ahead. It cautions against resisting closure or allowing lingering sadness to hinder your progress.

Reversed Keywords:
Acceptance, Moving on, Finding peace, Forgiveness, Reconciliation, Hope, Healing, Return, Recovery, New perspective

Tarot Reading

Love & Relationships

Upright Meaning:
The Five of Cups upright in a love reading represents loss, regret, and emotional healing. If you’re single, it suggests lingering pain from past relationships that may be blocking new opportunities. For those in a relationship, it indicates unresolved issues or disappointments that need to be addressed. The card encourages focusing on what remains and finding hope in moving forward.

Reversed Meaning:
The Five of Cups reversed in a love reading represents healing, acceptance, and moving forward. If you’re single, it suggests letting go of past heartbreaks and being ready to embrace new love. For those in a relationship, it indicates resolving conflicts and rebuilding trust. The card encourages focusing on what remains and finding hope in love again.

Money & Career

Upright Meaning:
In a career context, the Five of Cups upright represents disappointment, loss, or setbacks. It suggests facing challenges such as a failed project or missed opportunity. However, this card encourages you to focus on what remains and use these experiences as a learning opportunity to rebuild and move forward.

Reversed Meaning:
In a career context, the Five of Cups reversed represents recovery, moving forward, and finding solutions. It suggests overcoming setbacks in your professional life and focusing on rebuilding. Financially, it indicates a chance to recover from losses and improve your financial situation. The card advises learning from past mistakes and embracing new opportunities.

Health

Upright Meaning:
For health, the Five of Cups represents grief, emotional setbacks, or regret. It suggests that unresolved emotions or disappointments may be affecting your mental or physical health. This card encourages focusing on what remains positive in your life, seeking emotional healing, and finding ways to move forward with self-compassion.

Reversed Meaning:
The reversed Five of Cups in health readings represents healing, recovery, and moving forward. It suggests that you are beginning to release past emotional pain or regrets that have been affecting your health. The card encourages focusing on what remains positive, embracing self-compassion, and building a healthier outlook.

Spirituality

Upright Meaning:
In spirituality, the Five of Cups upright symbolizes loss, reflection, and spiritual learning through hardship. It suggests that difficult experiences may have left you feeling disconnected or discouraged, but they also offer profound lessons. The card encourages focusing on what remains and using those experiences to grow spiritually.

Reversed Meaning:
In spirituality, the Five of Cups reversed symbolizes healing, acceptance, and moving forward. It suggests that you may be beginning to release past disappointments or emotional wounds that have hindered your spiritual growth. The card encourages focusing on what remains and using those experiences to build a stronger spiritual foundation.

Tarot Cards

Arcana Type

Five Of Cups is part of the Minor Arcana.
The Minor Arcana consists of 56 cards that represent everyday events, challenges, and influences. Divided into four suits—Wands, Cups, Swords, and Pentacles—these cards focus on the practical, emotional, mental, and material aspects of life. While the Major Arcana reflects overarching themes, the Minor Arcana delves into the details of daily experiences, offering insight into decisions, relationships, and actions within specific situations.

Suit Type

Five Of Cups is part of the Suit of Cups.
The Suit of Cups symbolizes emotions, relationships, and intuition. It governs matters of the heart, such as love, friendships, and emotional well-being. Cups also represent creativity, inner reflection, and the flow of feelings in both personal and spiritual contexts.

Suit of Cups Keywords:
Emotions, Feelings, Relationships, Intuition, Dreams, Inner-world, Love, Healing, Spirituality

Numerology

Five Of Cups has the numberology number 5.
The numberology meaning of 5 is defined as having change, freedom, adventure. The number of movement and transformation. Represents learning through experience and versatility.

Zodiac Signs

Cancer:
Deeply intuitive and nurturing, Cancer prioritizes emotional connection and creating a safe haven for loved ones. Their determination is fueled by their protective and empathetic nature.

Scorpio:
Charming and fair-minded, Libra seeks harmony in relationships and environments. They are natural diplomats, valuing balance and a sense of beauty in all things.

Pisces:
Compassionate and intuitive, Pisces has a deep connection to emotions and the unseen. Their creativity and empathy enable them to dream big and offer support to others.

Tarot Mystic

Element

Five Of Cups is associated with the Water element.
Grounded and stable, Earth embodies practicality, security, and the material world. It is connected to growth, perseverance, and the foundations of life.

Chakras

Heart Chakra:
Loving and compassionate, the Heart Chakra bridges the physical and spiritual, focusing on relationships, forgiveness, and unconditional love.

Sacral Chakra:
Creative and sensual, the Sacral Chakra governs emotions, pleasure, and creativity. It encourages flow, passion, and the joy of experience.

Duality

Five Of Cups has the duality of Receptive.
Open and intuitive, receptive energy embodies adaptability, understanding, and the willingness to embrace new ideas and possibilities.

Season

Five Of Cups is associated with the season of Autumn.
Reflective and transformative, Autumn signifies harvest, change, and letting go. Its a season of gratitude, preparation, and turning inward.