The Knight of Swords as Intentions: To Get What He Wants, Directly

Written by Chaya the Medium.

The Knight of Swords as intentions is a plan with you as the destination and no detours. Here is what I would read in it, upright and reversed.

If you want the short answer, I would read the Knight of Swords as intentions that are direct, determined and driven by the head. In an intentions position the card suggests the person has a goal that involves you and means to pursue it fast, plainly and without much regard for feeling, theirs or yours. The intention is clear. Whether it is kind is a separate question.

This is the Knight charging with the blade out. He intends to arrive. He has not asked whether you want him to.

The Knight of Swords upright as intentions

Tina Gong's the Knight of Swords guide at Labyrinthos associates the upright card with ambition, drive, directness and fast action. When the card lands in a position that asks what someone intends toward you, I read those meanings as the shape of their plan rather than as a promise about what they will do. Feelings and intentions are different questions; the Knight of Swords as feelings covers the first, and this page covers the second. The Minor Arcana overview at Biddy Tarot is a useful second reference.

Upright, I read the Knight of Swords as a person who intends to say what they want and go after it: a direct approach, a blunt conversation, a decision made and acted on quickly. They are not planning to be subtle. They are planning to be clear, and clarity is their idea of respect.

What I would not read into it is tenderness in the plan. The Knight of Swords intends the goal. The person at the goal may or may not be considered as a person, and that is the thing to check.

What the card does not tell you

The card does not confirm that the person's goal is a relationship rather than a win, that they will stay once they have what they pursued, or that they have thought about what you want. No card lets a reader see another person's plans. What a card can do is describe the kind of intention that fits the person's behaviour, and give you something to check against what they actually do.

The Knight of Swords reversed as intentions

Reversed, the Knight of Swords as intentions describes aggression or chaos: an intention to win an argument rather than to connect, to pressure, to cut, or a plan so rash that it has no shape. It can describe someone who intends to confront you, or someone whose intentions toward you are mostly about being right.

In your own question, ask whether the person argues with you more than they listen, and whether their directness has ever been for your benefit rather than their point. A reversed card as intentions is a prompt to compare what is said with what is done, not a diagnosis of bad faith.

The Knight of Swords as an ex's intentions

Asked about an ex, the Knight of Swords as intentions can suggest they mean to say something to you, directly and soon, and that it may be sharp. That might be a wish to resolve things; it might be unfinished business of a harder kind. The card describes the approach, not the content. My guide to asking a psychic whether an ex will come back explains what a reading can and cannot say about that question.

The Knight of Swords as a new person's intentions

For someone new, this card describes someone who intends to pursue you decisively and plainly. Flattering and worth examining. Notice whether, once they have your attention, they intend to know you or only to have won.

What their intentions look like in action

Look for clarity with care: they say what they mean, and they also ask what you mean. A Knight of Swords intention that includes listening is upright. One that is all telling is reversed, however impressive the delivery.

What to record before drawing again

Keep three short notes: the question you asked, what the person has said directly about their intentions, and whether they have asked about yours. The third note separates interest in you from interest in winning.

For comparison, the Knight of Wands as intentions and the Knight of Pentacles as intentions describe different intentions. The the Knight of Swords card meaning page covers the card in full, and the Knight of Swords as a person and the Knight of Swords as a yes or no cover the other questions people most often ask of it. For a personal interpretation, my guide to a love psychic reading online explains how I work, and the three-card tarot listing and customer reviews are worth reading before deciding whether to order.