Types of Tarot Cards
Two main families: the Major and Minor Arcana. Knowing them is the first step of every reading.
Major Arcana: 22 cards from The Fool to The World. They narrate the soul's journey — when they appear, they speak of a great lesson, transformation or turning point.
Minor Arcana: 56 cards in four suits — Wands (passion and action), Cups (feeling and relationship), Swords (thought and word), Pentacles or Coins (body, work and money).
Court Cards: each suit has a Page, Knight, Queen and King. They either represent real people around you, or a part of your own personality that is active in the moment.
Some traditions also read reversed cards — when a card appears upside-down its meaning becomes more complex, blocked, or internal. Whether to use reversals is the reader's own choice.