What does the Three of Pentacles card mean in a Tarot Reading?
The Three of Pentacles Tarot card is a simple, positive Arcana. Its interpretation is usually straightforward. It is associated with work, diligence, friendly relations in a team.
Three of Pentacles is a simple positive Arcana that does not carry any hidden subtext. Try, make efforts and get results.
In practice, this card may mean that your efforts alone will not be enough to solve the problem, you need at least one or even two more people. Or, for highly developed people, that they must find in themselves three necessary qualities: blessing (priest), so the deed must be good, skill (architect), that implies professionalism and experience, and a sense of humor (jester), so as not to think about everything too seriously. Then success is assured.
The meaning of the Arcana is an opportunity to demonstrate your professional qualities, share the secrets of mastery with others.
Goal: Penetration into the mystery.
Element: Earth
Planet: Mars
Astrological sign: Capricorn
Depiction
A bricklayer is carving a pattern on the wall of a medieval monastery or church. The three pentacles form part of the central architectural design. The bricklayer turns to speak to the monk and another hooded figure, possibly a nun. They seem to be engaged in a joint and constructive discussion of the current work.
(For a detailed depiction, analysis of the Symbols and all Elements of the Three of Pentacles Tarot Card, click here)
The Main Meanings of the Card In an Upright Position
Key Words and Phrases
Completion begins. First awards. Job. High position at work. The opportunity to make good money. Superpowers. Professional growth. Promotion. Confidence.
Sincere efforts. High standards. Experience. Craftsmanship. Adequate level of performance. Skills that bring success. Job satisfaction. Diligence. Attention to detail. Improving working conditions. Promotion. Recognition, Approval. Raising social status. Honor. Good grades in the educational institution. Obtaining a certificate. Progress. New knowledge. Brotherly attitude. Confidence. Pay or reward for a job well done. Desire to achieve high social status and gain recognition. Obtaining a diploma (academic degree). Help from others. The possibility of a change of residence. Good start.
The main meanings of the card in an upright position
need help from other people;
it is necessary to reveal other qualities (sides) in oneself in order to successfully accomplish what was conceived;
significant creativity;
financial reward, material success;
moving to a higher level in skill;
decisive step;
diving into depth, not swimming on the surface;
promotion;
confidence;
pleasure from work;
in a relationship it can mean family pressure or you pay little attention to emotions;
aristocracy, glory;
noble, consistent, famous, important, great, greatness of the soul;
nobility of deeds, generous deeds, magnificent, brilliant;
your work bears fruit, success and prosperity lie ahead;
teamwork;
skilled labor;
professionalism, respect of others;
well-deserved success in business, raising the standard of living;
prosperity, abundance – as a reward for work;
strong cooperation, partnership.
Situation and Advice
Three of Pentacles is a card of development on the physical level. Perhaps we are talking about money, work, education, physical health, home, a project that involves getting real results. You will receive a well-deserved reward for the work done and the skillful use of your skills, knowledge and talents. You have made a good start, perhaps soon you will be recognized as a real specialist in your field. You will have the opportunity to make good money using your knowledge. You want to achieve high position, recognition, approval. You get satisfaction from a job well done. Promotion is possible. You can apply your talents to home improvement, perhaps redecoration or interior decoration. If you are a student, you will have good grades or a diploma. If your question was about love experiences, pay attention to the fact that little attention is paid to emotions in your relationship, you focus on material things, position, social recognition, or give in to family pressure. Sometimes, with the accompanying Arcana, the Three of Pentacles indicates an official marriage or the signing of a legal document.
Persons designated by Upright Three of Pentacles Tarot Сard
Workers. Talented people. Craftsmen. Attentive, dignified, competent employees. People striving for the ideal.
The Main Meanings of the Card In a Reversed Position
Key Words and Phrases
Bad job. Unsatisfactory work. Lack of direction. Lazyness. Lack of ambition. Disappointment. Trivial attempts. Boredom. Work “for show”. Inexperience. Lack of knowledge. Inadequate skills. Poor abilities. Ignorance. Missed opportunities. Unsuitable equipment. Thankless job. Not enough materials. Criticism for poor performance. Bad grades at school. Unpleasant situation at work: you are clearly underestimated. Lack of respect. Excessive preoccupation with gaining recognition, approval, or high position.
The main meanings of the card in a reversed position
for this period there is no assistant or quality, so it is better to postpone the matter;
mediocre work;
weakening, decline, decrease, meanness, cowardice;
disgust, humility, humiliation;
mediocrity, low position in society;
difficulties in work, dissatisfaction, indignation;
unskilled labor, pettiness, weakness;
stagnation, problems or setbacks in business;
problems with others (colleagues, partners);
lack of confidence in their actions, lack of professionalism, inexperience;
criticism of the querent.
Situation and Advice
Three of Pentacles in a reversed position indicates that you need to work harder, improve your knowledge, and apply it to important projects. Be careful and try not to miss a good opportunity because you are afraid to take risks. Perhaps you will have an increase in the amount of work for the reason that they simply do not know what exactly you are doing, or because the results of your work are not up to par.
Although you try, you feel like you are underestimated, or that you do not get satisfaction from the work, considering it boring. You may be too preoccupied with getting approval and recognition instead of thinking about work at work and doing it diligently. Perhaps your desire to achieve high position is to some extent interfering with your relationships with other people.
Persons designated by the Reversed Three of Pentacles Tarot Сard
Quitters. Inexperienced workers. People who know almost nothing, but love to show off. Bad workers. People who strive to achieve a high social status.
In the Spreads
In its most general form, the meaning of the Arcana is in the idea of joint activity. Together with a partner or colleagues, you can achieve greater success than alone. Now is the time to join forces to achieve a common goal. The highest results and implementation of the plan happens when everyone is in their place and everyone works in a single system.
According to Waite, the card can have such additional meanings as skilled labor or nobility.
Three of Pentacles is a positive Arcana, indicating the realization of a dream, successful conduct of business together with colleagues or like-minded people. However, the meaning of the card may vary slightly depending on the position in the spread.
In an Upright Position
This card personifies concrete actions, the stability of the achieved result, the consolidated order of affairs. The Three of Pentacles of the Tarot means that at the moment you need to work hard to implement plans that have been postponed for a long time, and remove all unnecessary barriers. The main value of the card is the embodiment of various projects, moving forward, developing professional competencies, mastering new knowledge.
The Three of Pentacles of Tarot in the upright position mainly tells about the work, about the success it brings and legal recognition for the querent. The work will be hard, it will be part of a collective project. It will be performed on behalf of others, and not as a personal matter of the querent. Clarity of purpose, personal skill and commitment will lead to success and great satisfaction.
Tarot card Three of Pentacles means enterprise, commerce. Skilled work or acquisition of qualifications, ability, skill. Success in trade or business. Personal merit, rise in prestige, fame and glory.
In the upright position, the Three of Pentacles Tarot card symbolizes successful teamwork. You have done what you know how to do well, and now you will receive the reward due.
Three of Pentacles in an upright position most often indicates a certain thing that has been done, is being done or will be done. The card is rather neutral, since the result of the case may be unclear, but it still has some material potential. In other words, this Arcana symbolizes slow, steady and continuous progress – without dizzying ups and downs, but also without stagnation and falls. Another meaning of the card is the success of joint efforts. If the Three of Pentacles fell out in fortune-telling, then this may indicate that one should not be overly arrogant and rely solely on his own strength. It is better to take advantage of the offer of help, the support of an influential patron.
Also, the Three of Pentacles Tarot can predict your success in business or trade, fame and even glory. In any case, this Arcana promises you the successful fulfillment of your plans, an increase in material wealth and the standard of living in general. However, for this you will have to work hard, proving your professionalism and high level of skill.
The Tarot card Three of Pentacles indicates cases when the people around them evaluate a person from the outside, it is like an exam or test. This is a demonstration of all the skills that were accumulated earlier, combat readiness. The image of a raised leg symbolizes a step forward, future successes.
In a Reversed Position:
The Three of Pentacles in a reversed position symbolizes poorly performed work. This is due to a lack of the necessary skills, time or experience, or from a reluctance to engage in this type of activity. It is also possible that this is influenced by the lack of any support or help from colleagues or friends.
The reversed Three of Pentacles Tarot card also indicates hard work, but in this case the result will not be as successful and will not bring reward to the querent. There will be misunderstandings and delays due to poor planning, incompetence of delegates, lack of experience. The querent will be criticized (rightly or through misunderstanding), which will make him feel indignant about the rough treatment.
The reversed Tarot card Three of Pentacles means mediocrity in work and in everything else, limitation, weakness.
Here, the reversed Three of Pentacles tells about laziness, lack of motivation to work, low results, insignificant but annoying monetary difficulties and problems.
If this card fell out to you in the spread, then the cause of difficulties, problems and slippage in your affairs is someone’s incompetence. It is not necessarily yours – it may be about the lack of experience of your employees, partners or colleagues with whom you are working on the project.
![Three of Pentacles. The Tarot of Vampyres [With Phantasmagoria] by Ian Daniels](https://esoterichut.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/TarotThree-of-Pentacles.gif)
The main thing is that because of this, the business is moving forward not at all as quickly as we would like, and most likely, it will bring you significantly less money than expected.
In addition, the reversed Three of Pentacles encourages you to prepare for criticism. It doesn’t matter if it is fair or not, you always need to have a few good arguments in reserve to deflect the blow and suspicion of incompetence.
The reversed Three of Pentacles means low quality of products or work performed, unprofessional approach. Mercury and Venus appear at a low level. Lack of enthusiasm, laziness, cunning, stubbornness, meanness, dirty tricks and unfair actions interfere.
The reversed card can mean the wrong choice of profession, professional unsuitability or mediocrity. The person has insufficiently developed skills to do the job. A waste of energy, time and effort on some accomplishments. The project conceived by the person will not be appreciated.
In the Spreads for Different situation
In an Upright Position:
In the case of the Three of Pentacles that is drawn is spreads for a situation, it means a slow but sure upward movement. Everything will go away without any unpleasant surprises, constraints or sudden jumps.
In a Reversed Position:
The reversed Arcana indicates a lack of abilities or skills to resolve the issue. You need to turn to someone for help or change the field to the one in which you understand better.
In the Spreads for Relationship
In an Upright Position:
The meaning of the card in love is quite simple – a calm and stable relationship, everything is fine, nothing happens. As an advice, the card can remind you of the need to listen to each other, solve all difficult issues together. It also often falls out as a sign that lovers are really working on relationships, do not let everything go by chance, and gradually and confidently build their happiness.
In terms of relationships and love, the Three of Pentacles shows that a decisive step is to be taken, which will allow us to move to more mature forms of relationship with the partner. This can mean the end of the search period and the beginning of a permanent, truly warm and sincere union. If such a union already exists, Arcana means that the initial difficulties or former crises have been overcome, and you go to a new level of relationship, using the accumulated experience. This can manifest itself as the beginning of a life together, or as a formal legalization of relations that has taken place, at last. On the part of the partner it means stability, trust and honesty.
In a Reversed Position:
The reversed Three of Pentacles in matters of love means unwillingness to work on a relationship. One or both partners do not listen to each other, refuse to give in or jointly seek a way out of difficult situations. Such a relationship does not seem serious. The card can also indicate a ostentatious idyll, when a picture of an ideal family is shown to society, but in reality everything is far from being so smooth.
In a reversed position, the Three of Pentacles may indicate the ambiguity and uncertainty of the relationship, the lack of their development.
In the Spreads for Dates
In an Upright Position:
It’s very good that you don’t succumb to the pressure of your peers, you don’t follow the crowd. When it comes to relationships, keep to your high standards. You deserve the best and can wait until you find it.
In a Reversed Position:
Your tendency to criticize anything and everything can intimidate a potential partner. Be softer, show your best side.
In the Spreads for Family
In an Upright Position:
You grew up in a hardworking, dedicated family that respects you and it’s mutual.
In a Reversed Position:
Lack of cooperation between family members can be a source of tension in relationships.
In the Spreads for Friendship
In an Upright Position:
One of your friends (perhaps someone a little older than you) has a very positive influence on you.
In a Reversed Position:
There are very imperfect role models around you. Look for friends who will inspire you to accomplish and stimulate you to grow, not those who pull you down.
In the Spreads for Money
In an Upright Position:
The financial situation is good. Stable income. You know how to control expenses and distribute money correctly. Financial shocks are also not expected in the near future.
In a Reversed Position:
The reversed Three of Pentacles indicates poor earnings, lack of remuneration for insufficient quality work.
In the Spreads for Education
In an Upright Position:
There will be an opportunity for you to show your talents. Take on the challenge and rejoice at the reward you win.
In a Reversed Position:
You lack motivation and intention. Turn on your imagination! Laziness and indifference must be fought.
In the Spreads for Career
In an Upright Position:
Three of Pentacles is the Tarot card of a good job and career. It symbolizes stability and harmonious development, everything is under your control. Things are going as planned, perhaps it is somewhat like a routine, but there are no unpleasant surprises. There is no need to take the initiative, just do what you have to do. You like your job, you get moral and material satisfaction from it. You also have opportunities to develop and realize your talents.
In the professional sphere, everything is in order, projects are developing, career growth is taking its course, no change of occupation is expected. There is no dismissal or the danger of incurring losses. However, this Arcana does not portend official takeoffs or millions in profits either.
In a Reversed Position:
The reversed Three of Pentacles has the exact opposite meaning of the upright card. It symbolizes negligence, careless performance of their duties, laziness, unwillingness to do the job efficiently. Accordingly, the result is bad in every sense.
In fortune-telling and spreads for a new job or project, the reversed Three of Pentacles directly indicates the futility of the plan, as well as the high probability of financial difficulties that may arise in connection with this.
In the Spreads for Health
In an Upright Position:
All body systems work as they should, thanks to your attention to your condition and taking care of yourself. If you are sick, the situation will improve soon.
Good physical health, complete recovery. Symbolizes everything related to health and body strengthening, cosmetic procedures without surgery.
In a Reversed Position:
Warns that your inattention to your body can lead to illness and health problems.
May indicate unprofessional doctor or poor treatment. Drug abuse, overwork from excessive exercise, excessive interest in plastic surgery.
Answer to Yes / No Tarot Spreads
In an Upright Position:
Definitive Yes.
In a Reversed Position:
No.
Self-Development Lesson
Body, mind and spirit are united here. You have mastered the skills you need and can move forward knowing that your peace of mind will help you achieve your goals. Continue to believe in the importance of interaction and collaboration.
Type of person in an upright position:
The card means a smart, serious, responsible person. He has healthy ambitions, striving for fame, wealth, glory, for which he is ready to work day and night. Nevertheless, the inner nobility will never allow him to go for the sake of goals over the heads.
Type of person in a reversed position:
It means a cunning, stubborn, spiteful person. However, he tries to hide his anger, but he does it with difficulty. Greedy, every now and then counts money, including other people’s pockets. He constantly strives to use the resources of other people under a plausible pretext.
Arcana’s warning
You should not try to do everything yourself. It’s perfectly okay to ask for help from others when you need it.
If you do not try, then there will be no result.
Final Advice of Arcana
Three of Pentacles advises to take a closer look at your surroundings, find a team of like-minded people. Mutually beneficial cooperation will lead you to your goal
You have a goal – go for it, do everything possible to achieve it.
In an Upright Position:
Strengthen business and friendly ties. Strive for professional realization, then success will not be long in coming.
In a Reversed Position:
Try to impress or distract if the situation calls for it. At the same time, try to avoid deception from others, as free cheese is only in a mousetrap.
Conclusion
The Tarot card Three of Pentacles is another success card, but in a different aspect. Three of Pentacles describes professionalism, dexterity in a craft, trade or other occupation and predicts that this skill can bring rewards. If this card personifies the questioner, then he (or she) is ready (or preparing, depending on the situation in the spread) to earn a good life. The presence of the Three of Pentacles in the spread indicates that the choice of a profession will lead to success. If this card describes a situation or an upcoming event, you are told that acquiring a profession that is in demand in the market will lead to ultimate success. It is also assumed that the questioner has the potential to learn such a craft, which in many cases is not bad news at all.
Discover other Minor Arcana:
Suit of Swords
Ace of Swords
Two of Swords
Three of Swords
Four of Swords
Five of Swords
Six of Swords
Seven of Swords
Eight of Swords
Nine of Swords
Ten of Swords
Page of Swords
Knight of Swords
Queen of Swords
King of Swords
Suit of Wands
Ace of Wands
Two of Wands
Three of Wands
Four of Wands
Five of Wands
Six of Wands
Seven of Wands
Eight of Wands
Nine of Wands
Ten of Wands
Page of Wands
Knight of Wands
Queen of Wands
King of Wands