Knight of SwordsTarot card meaning
The Knight of Swords is a Minor Arcana card in the suit of Swords. In tarot it means charge, conviction and speed of thought. As a yes or no answer, it leans no.
Full speed into the wind. The Knight of Swords is conviction in motion, the argument made brilliantly, the cause defended at a gallop. Powerful, fast, and worth aiming carefully.
In a yes or no reading: No · yes or no tarot →
- Element
- Air
- Astrology
- Air in motion
- Number
- Knight
What the card shows
A knight charges at full gallop into the wind, sword high, cape tearing behind him, birds scattered across a rough sky. Even the trees bend away from his path. He is the fastest card in the deck and the least likely to have read the map. Truth at this speed rescues some situations and flattens others.
Knight of Swords reversed
The charge without the map. Reversed, it names words that outrun thought, the reply sent too fast, the crusade that forgot its cause mid-gallop.
How to read a reversed card →Knight of Swords in love
In love, the Knight of Swords is saying everything at once: the full-speed charge, the sword out front, the wild-eyed horse. It speaks of a declaration that runs people over, of a fight where things are said that cannot be unsaid, of someone who comes in and out of your life like a gust. The card does not deny the sincerity. It denies the speed.
Is Knight of Swords a yes or a no?
The Knight of Swords answers no, not like this. He charges at full speed with the sword out front, the horse wild-eyed and the wind against him. What you ask is being done too fast and too hard. The card does not deny the goal. It denies the charge.
Compare: the same card in all four suits
| Card | Keyword | Element | Yes or no |
|---|---|---|---|
| Knight of Wands | boldness | Fire | Yes |
| Knight of Cups | romance | Water | Yes |
| Knight of Swords | charge | Air | No |
| Knight of Pentacles | steadiness | Earth | Not yet clear |
Cards that often appear with it
- Queen of Swords
The next card in the suit
- Knight of Pentacles
The same number in the opposed element
- Justice
The Major Arcana that rules this suit's questions
Number and correspondence
In the deck's old correspondences, the Knight of Swords belongs to Air in motion.
Will this card find you tonight?
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