Five of Swords Tarot Card Meaning

Five of Swords upright

A scornful man gathers swords while two defeated figures walk away, their swords left on the ground. Waite says he is master of the field, and lists degradation, destruction, revocation, infamy, dishonour and loss. Ask whether this fight is worth what it costs.

Five of Swords reversed

Waite reversed gives the same meanings. Choose peace over being right; apologise if you need to, or walk away from people who play unfairly.

A reversed card (What does Upright / reversed card mean?) is one drawn upside-down.

Is Five of Swords a yes or no?

Upright: Leans no. No — even if you win, it will cost too much.

Reversed: Reversed, Five of Swords reads as a gentle no: lingering conflict, regret, making amends.

The yes/no lean is BornClock’s reading convention drawn from the card’s meaning — Waite himself did not assign one.

Symbolism in the Five of Swords card

What appears in the 1909 Rider–Waite–Smith picture, as Waite describes it:

• Scornful man holding three swords — Waite: master of the field
• Two defeated figures walking away — the cost of the victory
• Swords on the ground — what was given up

In Waite’s own words (paraphrased)

Upright: degradation, destruction, revocation, infamy, dishonour, loss.

Reversed: the same.

Source: A. E. Waite, The Pictorial Key to the Tarot (1910, public domain). Some of Waite’s 1910 fortune-telling meanings are old-fashioned; the plain-English reading above is ours.