Four of Cups Tarot Card Meaning

This Tarot card shows a gloomy young man sitting under a tree in a closed posture, with crossed arms and legs. It's hard to tell whether he's tense or indifferent, but his expression clearly conveys disapproval. The cups before him seem to provoke dissatisfaction, and he completely ignores the one emerging from a cloud.

The image perfectly captures the main idea of the Four of Cups: we often criticize all the good things in our lives and stubbornly overlook the opportunities presented by Fate.

Have you perhaps indulged in too much merriment and lived a whirlwind life? Or are you fixated on past achievements, desperately clinging to what once was, while overlooking the joys and opportunities of the present?

Either way, the appearance of the Four of Cups tarot card suggests that an inexplicable apathy, melancholy, and boredom have taken hold of you. You feel dissatisfaction and irritation, behaving like a spoiled child, burdening those around you with complaints and whims.

When the Four of Cups shows up in a reading, it indicates that even new opportunities presented by Fate fail to ignite your former enthusiasm—you tend to dismiss them as unworthy of your attention. Work has become tiresome, professional accomplishments don't bring joy, and what used to delight you in a loved one now only causes muted irritation. This tarot card signals a crisis in your life, urging you to make immediate changes.

The Four of Cups encourages you to take a complete inventory of your life—return to your roots, reconnect with your true self, reflect on timeless values, adjust personal goals, and stop being a harsh judge of others. Even the sun has spots! By heeding this advice, you may overcome the negative forecast of the Four of Cups tarot card and break free from emotional stagnation, revive your interest in life, and find new motivation to develop your talents.

Key Meanings of the Upright Four of Cups

• Satiety, stagnation, boredom, habit, disappointment, dissatisfaction, indifference.
• Fatigue, reluctance to change traditions, resistance to the new.
• Critical attitude, discontent, irritability, bad mood.

The reversed Four of Cups tarot card brings a positive outlook. This card, when turned upside down, symbolizes a renewal of emotions, new opportunities on the horizon, dreams coming true, and delightful, inspiring events in life. Like a warm wave, you are swept up in a whirlwind of joyful changes, carrying you on the wings of new opportunities toward cherished peaks in love, career, and creativity!

If the Four of Cups appears reversed in a reading, it suggests romantic encounters in your personal life, rekindling relationships with a loved one, or an invitation to a gathering where you might make pleasant connections. In the professional realm, the card promises a successful job change, an intriguing new position, a salary increase, and recognition of your achievements.

— All favorable events predicted by the reversed Four of Cups tarot card are granted by Fate suddenly, like a delightful surprise. In short, when you see the reversed Four of Cups in a reading, get ready for pleasant surprises!

Key Meanings of the Reversed Four of Cups Card

• Positive changes, good news, improvement in all current matters.
• New opportunities and ambitions, fresh emotions and feelings, a burst of enthusiasm, motivation for new achievements, escape from routine.
• Meeting someone new, dating, falling in love, restoring relationships.

In love readings, the upright Four of Cups suggests disappointment and sad memories of past happiness.

It describes a negative mindset and skepticism that surrounds you like an unbreakable shell, preventing new connections and relationships from forming. You may find yourself avoiding people, guarding your peace with intentional solitude, while life's joys pass you by.

A shake-up is needed—new experiences and a change of scenery could help break free from this oppressive state and fill your inner void with vibrant colors. Fate is ready to offer you a cup brimming with love, sincerity, and happiness!

When reversed, the meaning of the card flips to predict a new encounter and the start of a budding romance.

In Readings About a Suitor or Beloved

In readings about a suitor or partner, the upright card indicates that your chosen one is experienced in matters of love, making it hard to surprise them. They are not quick to make the first move towards new feelings, preferring to wait for others to do so.

The reversed card suggests that your chosen one is someone fun and interesting in love. Even if you've been together for a while, they can always come up with something new to pleasantly surprise you.

In business readings, the Four of Cups card indicates a sense of dissatisfaction and professional burnout. Everything feels too mundane and stable, inevitably leading to stagnation in your career.

Your efforts seem stuck at a standstill, like a fly caught in honey—you're treading water and getting deeper into the routine. What you need is a bold leap to break free from this trap and rediscover the joy and excitement of your work. The "remedy" varies; some may just need to rethink their approach to their job, while others might require a complete career change.

When reversed, the meaning of the card shifts to the opposite, suggesting good fortune and a sudden improvement in your affairs.

When drawing the upright Four of Cups card, it represents a person to whom things come more easily than to others. This individual is hard to impress or surprise!

In the reversed position, this card signifies someone open to new experiences. They are attentive, quick to grasp opportunities, and strive not to miss the chances generously offered by life.

In the upright position, the card encourages you to escape the monotony of daily life like the wind, by adding as much variety as possible!

When appearing in a reversed position in a spread, the card suggests taking advantage of new opportunities — this is truly a gift from fate.

If the card appears upright, the outlook for your situation is mixed. You have the potential to achieve whatever you desire, but emotional fatigue and laziness might stand in your way.

When reversed, the card offers a positive forecast for your situation. Life will delight you with new experiences, pleasant surprises, and gifts of fate.

With the 0 card Fool – Payback for foolishness, hangover, love disappointment.

With the 1 card Magician — Scatter-brain, lies, new acquaintance, emotional burnout.

With the 2 card High Priestess — Denial of the obvious, double game, being led by someone.

In combination with the 3 card Empress — Deep resentment, hidden disagreements, transitional age.

With the 4 card Emperor — Losing interest in work, lots of minor offers, no time for personal life.

With the 5 card Hierophant — Facing hypocrisy, public condemnation, sanctimoniousness.

With the 6 card Lovers — Living by someone else's dictation, self-deception, awakening of independence.

With the 7 card Chariot — Influence of otherworldly forces, prophetic dream, minor disorder.

With the 8 card Strength — Forgive debts, empathize with someone's situation, renounce patronage.

With the 9 card Hermit — Church rites, new look at spiritual upbringing, unpleasant duty or act under pressure.

With the 10 card Wheel of Fortune — Temporary depression, reason to think, boredom.

With the 11 card Justice — Being inconsistent, selfishness, bias.

With the 12 card Hanged Man — Refuse help, contempt for sympathy, withdrawal from social interaction.

With the 13 card Death — Business failures, empty efforts, failed attempts and disappointment.

With the 14 card Temperance — Sadness, gloom, fatigue or inner resentments without reason.

With the 15 card Devil — Obvious disgust, dependence, mischief or bad temper.

With the 16 card Tower — Alcohol dependency, drown sorrows, refuse help or fear pity.

With the 17 card Star — Desire for change, to fall into dependence on the environment, desire for solitude.

With the 18 card Moon — To detach from the world, to forget troubles for a while, rest in solitude.

With the 19 card Sun — Fleeting sorrow, minor depression or cooling of relationships.

With the 20 card Judgement — Boredom or routine, automatism, desire for rest or change of scenery.

With the 21 card World — Mild melancholy, need for a breather, overload of emotions or impressions.

With the Ace of Wands — Lose enthusiasm, lose motivation, emotional overload.

With the Two of Wands — Suspicion, sense something fishy, avoid rushing into action.

With the Three of Wands — Reassess priorities, look at the situation from a different perspective, experience disagreements with a loved one.

With the Four of Wands — Be tired of socializing, exhausted from family life, feeling routine or lacking motivation.

With the Five of Wands — Engage in arguments out of inertia, stuck in a repetitive cycle, prolonged conflicts.

With the Six of Wands — Engage in arguments out of inertia, stuck in a repetitive cycle, prolonged conflicts.

With the Seven of Wands — Prejudices, discontent, and dissatisfaction, having a negative mindset.

With the Eight of Wands — Feeling undervalued, giving in to pressure, agreeing to unfavorable conditions.

With the Nine of Wands — Past bitter experiences, receiving questionable advice, feeling perplexed about decision-making.

With the Ten of Wands — Pitying oneself, being needlessly offended, feeling unsatisfied or attempting to elevate one's status.

With the Page of Wands — Losing interest in what's happening, feeling disappointed in the learning process, experiencing melancholy.

With the Knight of Wands — Fading interest or feelings in a relationship, loss of enthusiasm, cooling off emotionally.

With the Queen of Wands — Limited perspectives, seeing things in black and white, being uncompromising.

With the King of Wands — Being dissatisfied with one's own work, self-criticism, desiring more.

With the Ace of Swords — Miss out on a great idea, stay on the sidelines, fail to meet expectations, or act maliciously towards others.

With the Two of Swords — Pessimism, unwillingness to learn or change for the better, fear of seeking help or treatment.

With the Three of Swords — Fail to notice betrayal, extreme selfishness or naivety, living off of others' success.

With the Four of Swords — Unfounded pride, rejecting help from professionals, experiencing nervous disorders.

With the Five of Swords — Carrying the burden of someone else's secret, knowing and concealing the truth, covering up someone else's wrongdoing.

With the Six of Swords — Making an unwise real estate purchase, engaging in foolish thrift or engaging in dishonest dealings.

With the Seven of Swords — Refusing a shameful proposal, being principled, idealism, and non-acceptance of established rules.

With the Eight of Swords — Suffering for an idea, being backed into a corner, feeling trapped with no way out and forced compromises.

With the Nine of Swords — Mourning one's own stubbornness, regretting the past, feeling ashamed of one's behavior.

With the Ten of Swords — Ignoring a warning and facing unpleasant consequences, suffering due to foolishness, neglecting safety measures.

With the Page of Swords — Considering oneself the smartest, being lively and maximalistic, having a sharp tongue, engaging in journalism.

With the Knight of Swords — Working alone, having unconventional ideas, attracting attention and criticism, sparking intense discussions.

With the Queen of Swords — Living according to one's own convictions, denying societal norms of behavior, making sharp statements.

With the King of Swords — Engaging in blackmail or extortion, attempting to control others, promoting an obsessive ideology or cult.

With the Two of Cups — Relationship conflicts, dissatisfaction, grievances, or differences in perspectives.

With the Three of Cups — Withdrawal from others, isolation, feeling tired of hypocrisy, need for rest.

With the Five of Cups — Tired of disappointments, naivety, and protest, learning from one's own mistakes.

With the Six of Cups — Not fitting in with the past, hiding one's biography, being dependent on others' opinions.

With the Seven of Cups — Rejecting unrealistic dreams and desires, being a realist or pessimist, narrow-mindedness.

With the Eight of Cups — Predictable behavior, acting out of habit, facing societal disapproval.

With the Nine of Cups — Becoming conceited, distorting concepts, self-admiration.

With the Ten of Cups — Rejecting commonly accepted values, protesting against norms, yearning for independence.

With the Page of Cups — Returning to a previous stage, going in circles, being late to implement an idea.

With the Knight of Cups — Missing a good opportunity, not taking an offer seriously, refusing promising romantic relationships.

With the Queen of Cups — Not listening to good advice, considering oneself smarter than others, becoming a mentor to an immature individual.

With the King of Cups — Engaging in heavy persuasion, offering peace or cooperation, ending hostilities.

With the Ace of Pentacles — Self-reliance, private capital, ability to survive alone, rejection of conventional earning schemes.

With the Two of Pentacles — Risky investment, playing on the stock market, high probability of losing savings.

With the Three of Pentacles — Creative approach to business, first steps in entrepreneurship, not relying on others' experiences.

With the Four of Pentacles — Having savings for a rainy day, not yielding to persuasion, careful fact-checking.

With the Five of Pentacles — Finding oneself in restrictive conditions, underestimating the problem, ignoring what is happening.

With the Six of Pentacles — Pride preventing asking for help, living on the edge of financial resources, facing a crisis.

With the Seven of Pentacles — Investing money independently, hidden income, ability to save.

With the Eight of Pentacles — Understanding earning schemes, refraining from indulgence and entertainment, practicing asceticism.

With the Nine of Pentacles — Self-sufficiency, not chasing public recognition, not flaunting one's wealth.

With the Ten of Pentacles — Refusing help from family members, living modestly without relying on family wealth, rejecting family recommendations or connections.

With the Page of Pentacles — Turning down a relationship or job offer, a persistent girl, an unwanted connection.

With the Knight of Pentacles — Focusing on a career, desire to earn significant money, hesitancy in starting one's own business.

With the Queen of Pentacles — Loveless marriage, courting a wealthy lady, being dissatisfied with one's financial situation.

With the King of Pentacles — Not obeying a boss or mentor, conflicting with a superior, leaving a job.