Queen of Cups Meaning: Upright and Reversed

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Thea Engst

Thea Engst has been working with Tarot for six years. She has taken a course, worked with a mentor, and honed her skills on her own. Thea utilizes Tarot for her own personal guidance and to help friends and family through difficult times, as well as selling readings through Etsy and Instagram. Her favorite deck is the Motherpeace and she often uses oracle cards and a pendulum for clarity in difficult questions.

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The Queen of Cups is an introspective card, full of insight into both the subconscious and the unconscious. In this guide to the Queen of Cups meaning, we’ll see how this is a reflective card, representing a high emotional intelligence.

Keywords for the Queen of Cups Tarot Card

Upright Keywords:

• Introspective
• Subconscious
• Reflective
• Unconscious
• Empathy
• Emotions
• Intuition

Reversed Keywords:

• Emotionally empty
• Emotionally exhausted
• Need to slow down
• Not emotionally healthy
• Worn out
• Emotional immaturity
• Insecure

The Suit of Cups

Cups are involved with love and human relationships. This does not always mean romantic relationships, so please keep that in mind. This could be a professional relationship, a platonic relationship, or even a relationship with yourself. The relationship in question will be revealed by the cards around the Cups card pulled and the question you asked the cards.

Cups are associated with the element of water and therefore the three zodiac water signs in the astrological calendar. Those are Pisces, Cancer, and Scorpio. The water sign associated with the Queen of Cups particularly is Cancer. Does your question involve someone whose sun sign is Cancer? What about a  Pisces or a Scorpio?

Read our full guide to tarot cards meaning.

Queens in Tarot 

Building off of the zodiac concept in the above section, it’s important to note that each court card (Kings, Queens, Knights, and Pages) represent not one but two different zodiac signs. The Queen of Cups is strongly associated with water because it is in the suit of Cups, but it is also associated with the element of air. This aligns the Queen of Cups with the three air signs: Gemini, Libra, and Aquarius, particularly Gemini.

So now you must consider if a Cancer and/or a Gemini is involved in your question.

Queens overall are motherly figures in the Tarot. They are not necessarily women but have strong feminine energy and feminine strength. They are strongly associated with the element they represent, in this case, water. This makes them conduits for the element. When you pull a Queen in a reading, you are being challenged to channel the energy of their element into your life.

Symbolism and Imagery of the Queen of Cups

The Queen of Cups sits at the ocean’s shore. The blues of the water and the cloudless sky tie her to the subconscious mind. Her cloak itself is the pattern and color of rippled water showing us that she is comfortable with emotions, with unspoken thoughts. She is one with the depths of the subconscious mind as symbolized with all this water and the color blue.

Though the Queen of Cups is at the shore, her feet rest on pebbles of various colors, not in the water. This shows us that she is in touch with her emotions but not ruled by them. Many of the pebbles are green, showing that she is quite grounded and in touch with the element of earth. More greenery lines the cliffs behind her.

The Queen of Cups is unique because her cup is covered. This symbolizes where the emotions of the Queen are coming from. They do not come from her cup, they come from within her. She is in control.

The Queen sits on a throne engraved with small mermaids or sea nymphs, fish, and seashells. This ties her further with the depths of the ocean and therefore the depths of the subconscious and unconscious.

The cliffs and beach are yellow behind and beneath her, along with her cup and her crown. Yellow is a color tied to the air element, bringing in the Gemini side of her. Air as an element is associated with higher consciousness. This queen is heavily aligned with both the subconscious and higher consciousness of emotional intelligence and intuitiveness.

Queen of Cups Meaning 

If you pull the Queen of Cups upright, this is a very positive reflection of your emotional state. You are intuitive, you are on point. You can read emotions clearly and you feel things appropriately, but you are not controlled by or overwhelmed by your emotions or the emotions of others.

If you don’t feel that’s true, it is time for you to do some self-reflection and step into this role. Trust yourself, your intuition is strong and on point.

You are a good person to go for for advice in any matter. This is a great card but can become a tough position to be in. Be careful not to take on too much. Being so in touch with emotions easily leads to being an empathetic sponge and can bring you down, which brings us to the Queen of Cups reversed.

If you pull this card reversed, you are bogged down by emotions. You are running yourself ragged and it’s blocking your intuition. You may feel like you’re on point but trust me, you are not.

The Queen of Cups reversed is telling you to slow down. You’re no good to anyone, especially yourself right now. It’s time to exercise some self-care to the max. The self-care you need is self-reflection though. Time to meditate, time to reset from the inside.

This card could also be a sign that your heart and head are out of balance. Usually, it indicates that you are ruling with your emotions more than your logic.

Finally, this card could be telling you that you are burying your emotions for one reason or another. Do you not feel comfortable fully expressing yourself? Is there an issue with your partner, your family, your coworkers? Have you quieted your true feelings so as not to ‘rock the boat’? If so, the Queen of Cups appearing is indicating that it’s time to speak up. Burying feelings is not healthy and it will bleed into the rest of your life. This could lead to depression, be careful!

Queen of Cups in Love Meaning

The Queen of Cups upright in a love reading is good because you know your own emotions.

If you have a partner right now, you’re in a really stable time of feeling fulfilled and balanced. If you are single: this is the time to get out there! What you find will be healthy, caring, and fun!

The Queen of Cups upright in a love reading could also be a reminder to speak your mind and make sure your partner knows how you feel.

Finally, this queen could be a person in your love life. Whoever they are, they will be just like her: strong, feminine, and caring. You are fortunate to have this presence in your life at all and to have it in your love life is really lovely.

If you pull this card reversed in a love reading, emotions are blocked. You are not letting your partner get close to you because you fear dishonesty. You cannot be in a healthy relationship without trust though, so let go of your issues to move forward.

The Queen of Cups reversed is not the best person to be around, unlike her upright counterpart. If you are acting sulky or notice that your partner is not quite themselves, this is what the Queen of Cups is trying to bring your attention to. You (or your partner) need some time alone to let go of insecurities and allow yourself to be vulnerable. A good relationship has to involve those involved in exposing their vulnerabilities.

Queen of Cups in Career and Money Meaning

If you pull the Queen of Cups upright in a career and money reading, it’s a good sign. This means you have a solid intuition and all you need to do is trust that.

This card in a career and money reading is also challenging you to ask if you are emotionally fulfilled at your current job. It may be the push you need to get into the career that would actually make you happy. Because Queens is such a nurturer, this could mean that you should get into a caregiving job. Have you always considered becoming a nurse or a nanny? Trust your gut, it will make you happier in your day-to-day life.

Queens and court cards in general are stable cards when upright. Therefore, pulling the Queen of Cups upright in a career and money reading is also telling me that you are financially stable right now. Stay focused, don’t go crazy with the extra cash.

If you pull the Queen of Cups reversed in a career and money reading, things are not super stable for you. When this Queen is upright in this reading, she shows financial stability, therefore when she is blocked, it shows a lack of financial stability.

The Queen of Cups reversed in a career and money reading is also indicating that things aren’t great at work. You take on a lot being empathetic, and it makes you bring your work home on an emotional level. This leads to a lot of emotional drains. You need to take better care of yourself and protect your emotional health.

This pattern will lead to creative blocks, as creativity is so tied to emotions.

Queen of Cups in Home and Family Meaning

The Queen of Cups in a home and family reading is the matriarch of your family unit. She is strong, maternal, and the caregiver of everyone. Is this you? Is it your grandmother? Whoever it is, you have a Queen of Cups and you are lucky! The person is great to lean on for advice: trust them. If it is you: know that people will always come to you for guidance.

If the Queen of Cups is reversed in your home and family reading, you are lacking guidance. The matriarch is either not there, or is too overwhelmed by the emotional burdens of others to help. If this is your loved one, do what you can to help them relax and take care of themselves. This isn’t the time to lean on them, it’s the time to help them reboot.

If this is you, you need to take some time to yourself. You should meditate, do yoga, or do whatever it is that helps you re-center. You cannot help anyone, especially yourself, if you are running on empty.

The Queen of Cups in Health Meaning

The Queen of Cups upright in a health reading is positive because right now you need someone to take care of you. The Queen of Cups is a caregiver and you may not be feeling one-hundred percent right now. Fortunately for you, you have a Queen of Cups who is looking out for you and making sure you’re taken care of.

You may also be this Queen of Cups to someone else right now. If you are, make sure you don’t overextend yourself.

If the Queen of Cups is reversed in this reading then you have not succeeded in putting up boundaries and taking care of yourself. Your emotional and therefore physical health is suffering. You need to take care of yourself now.

Queen of Cups FAQs