The Queen of Pentacles represents the maturation of Pentacles themes—material security, stability, and abundance—in the form of archetypally feminine energy. Symbolically, this can be understood as representing the qualities of grounded practicality, patience, and determination.  As the Queen of her element, earth, she represents the ability to balance her material need for comfort and security with her emotional need for relationships and pleasure.

Where the key meanings of the Major Arcana focus on life’s overarching themes and events, Minor Arcana cards like the Queen of Pentacles explore and reveal the more subtle changes impacting one’s day-to-day life and near future. The Queen of Pentacles also bears similarities with its sibling court cards, the Queen of Cups, Queen of Wands, and Queen of Swords, in that all four deal with themes of nurturing, caretaking, introspection, and creativity.

Like the rest of the suit of Pentacles, the Queen of Pentacles is typically associated with the earth zodiac signs of astrology: Virgo, Taurus, and Capricorn.

Queen of Pentacles Keywords

Upright Keywords

Reversed Keywords

nurturing self and others, connection to nature, building wealth, patience and determination

disconnected from body or self, impatience, worry, controlling tendencies

Description of the Queen of Pentacles Tarot Card

After the Knight of Pentacles takes action toward his goals, the Queen of Pentacles emerges as a symbol of wisdom and patient determination around her ability to channel her energy toward what she desires. The frenetic haste of the Knight has matured into the Queen’s grounded confidence and her ability to nurture herself, her relationships, and her responsibilities with care and loving attention.

In the Rider Waite Smith tarot deck, the Queen of Pentacles sits upon an ornately carved throne, bearing a humble and introspective expression and gazing at the large pentacle in her lap, which is representative of her earthly desires. Although she has an elevated position in society, she appears at home in her garden, which she’s cultivated with love and patience.

Her garden is overflowing with life, as climbing roses frame her overhead and flowers and grasses surround her at her feet. Through her attention and care, she nurtures life around her to create a verdant and lush ecosystem. The health of her garden is a mirror for the health of her body and her relationships, which she tends to like a mother figure with the same quality of attention.

The bunny which darts across the scene may symbolize fertility, as rabbits are prolific procreators of the natural world. As emblems of Spring (through their connection to Easter and the pagan fertility goddess Eostre), they represent the emergence of new life and the ability to generate abundance in the material world.

Queen of Pentacles Upright Meaning

In the upright position of a tarot reading, the Queen of Pentacles symbolizes an ability to channel your energy toward relationships, projects, business ventures, and personal goals, which thrive under your attention and dedicated care. That which you invest your time and energy into has the potential to reap sustainable and abundant rewards. Through your patience, hard work, and determination, you can create material stability and success.

The Queen of Pentacles represents an ability to nurture yourself and others through a careful balance of giving and receiving energy. When in balance, this feels like reciprocal relationships that are mutually beneficial and affirming. You can tend to those you love because you also create the time and space to attend to your own needs and well-being through your daily rituals and routines.

The Queen of Pentacles facilitates life blossoming around her through the quality of her attention to the present moment. Her connection to the rhythms of nature allows her to know when to plant, when to harvest, and when to rest. She represents the down-to-earth ability to appreciate the particular season you find yourself in and the wisdom of knowing the best ways to respond to it.

Love and Relationships (Upright Meaning)

The Queen of Pentacles upright suggests that you are a nurturing presence for others in your life and that you support your loved ones with practical and emotional guidance and wisdom. The Queen reminds you that although you are a stabilizing force for others, you must nurture yourself with the same love and attention in order for your efforts to be sustainable.

The Queen of Pentacles can also suggest a relationship that is built slowly over time, with a strong foundation of trust and accountability to each other. You and your partner may share similar long-term values and goals, and the relationship is a garden that allows you to cultivate prosperity, abundance, and stability in your lives.

Love/relationships upright keywords

Career/finance upright keywords

nurturing and stabilizing presence for others, nurturing oneself, long-term stability and abundance 

building wealth and stability, cultivating talents and skills, investing energy into sustainable models of work

Career and Finance (Upright Meaning)

The Queen of Pentacles upright symbolizes your efforts to build material wealth and financial security over the long term through the cultivation of your resources, talents, and skills. You could be motivated to build sustainable and common sense ways of working that honor your need for both productivity and rest and allow you to feel connected to the generative principles of nature.

Because the Queen of Pentacles is the Queen of earth, this card is tied to tangible, practical, and grounded ways of working, whether alone or with a business partner or coworker. It is an encouragement to develop your skills and talents with patience, dedication, and hard work. Invest your energy into building sustainable systems of financial independence that can continue to generate abundance, like the garden that grows more lush with each year.

Queen of Pentacles Reversed Meaning

The reversed Queen of Pentacles suggests an imbalance of energy which may reflect a disconnection from your physical body or the natural world. You may be consumed with work or responsibilities at home and are finding that you have become neglectful of your own self-care. This card encourages you to make time for activities that ground you and connect you to yourself and the natural world.

The Queen of Pentacles reversed can also speak to a feeling of impatience and worry around your material security and stability. You may be working to build structures and systems that can generate returns down the line and are feeling anxious about the success or failure of your endeavors. This card reminds you to ground into the present moment and focus on the practical steps within your control.

The reversed Queen of Pentacles can suggest that you’re trying to control a situation, relationship, or project, and in the process, you may be pushing too hard to force results or progress. Reconnect to the wisdom of this card, which reminds you that you cannot compel a flower to blossom, but instead focus on creating the conditions that will support growth.

Love and Relationships (Reversed Meaning)

The Queen of Pentacles in the reversed position of a love reading may suggest that there is an imbalance in the energy of give and take within your relationship and that you may benefit from focusing on nurturing yourself more. This card reminds you that you cannot give when you feel depleted and that focusing on your own self-care can restore you emotionally and physically.

The Queen of Pentacles reversed may also speak to a desire to control the course of events within a relationship. If you are worrying about your long-term stability, you may be trying to enforce a feeling of safety by exerting control over your partner. This card asks you to check in with and give voice to your feelings in the present moment.

Love/relationships reversed keywords

Career/finance reversed keywords

imbalance of give and take within a relationship, need to focus on self-care, controlling tendencies

burnt out, need a restorative break, anxiety about the future, practical action, gratitude

Career and Finance (Reversed Meaning)

In the reverse position, the Queen of Pentacles can suggest that you are feeling burnt out on work and are in need of a restorative break. You could be working hard to establish material security for yourself or your family and, in the process, have struggled to make time for yourself. Reconnecting to your own spirit and to nature can be healing and allow you to feel a sense of inner calm.

The reversed Queen of Pentacles may also indicate that you’re feeling anxious about the future or your long-term material security. This card encourages you to take practical action and work on what is within your control and then release your fear and anxiety by focusing on the gifts of the present moment. When you notice and appreciate the abundance you already possess, you make room for more to come in.