The Three of Wands as Intentions: To Wait for What They Have Already Sent

Written by Chaya the Medium.

The Three of Wands as intentions is a plan already launched, with the ships still at sea. Here is what I would read in it, upright and reversed.

If you want the short answer, I would read the Three of Wands as intentions that are already in motion. In an intentions position the card suggests the person has made their move, a message, an offer, a gesture, and now intends to wait and see what comes back. The intention has been acted on. The next intention depends on you.

This is the figure on the cliff watching the ships. They intend to see what returns. They have done their part and they know it.

The Three of Wands upright as intentions

Tina Gong's the Three of Wands guide at Labyrinthos associates the upright card with expansion, foresight, overseas opportunities and long-range plans. 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 Three of Wands as feelings covers the first, and this page covers the second. The general card meanings at Biddy Tarot are a useful second reference.

Upright, I read the Three of Wands as a person who intends patience after effort: they reached toward you, in whatever form, and they mean to let the result arrive rather than chase it. If you have received nothing, the ships may still be at sea. If you received something and did not answer, this card is the person waiting.

What I would not read into it is a second attempt. The Three of Wands intends to wait for the first one to land. The person is not planning to send a seventh ship.

What the card does not tell you

The card does not confirm what the person sent, that it reached you in the form they meant, or that they will wait indefinitely. 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 Three of Wands reversed as intentions

Reversed, the Three of Wands as intentions describes effort that stalled: a plan to reach you that was never carried out, a return that is overdue, or a person who thinks they showed intention in a way you never saw. It can also describe a plan abandoned because the ships did not come back fast enough.

In your own question, ask whether the person has been waiting on something from you that you have not given, or whether they believe they reached out in a way that never arrived. A reversed card as intentions is a prompt to compare what is said with what is done, not a diagnosis of bad faith.

The Three of Wands as an ex's intentions

Asked about an ex, the Three of Wands as intentions can suggest they have sent something toward you, a message, an apology, a signal, and intend to see what comes back before doing more. Check your own horizon. If nothing has arrived, the ships may never have left harbour. My guide to asking a psychic whether an ex will come back explains what a reading can and cannot say about that question.

The Three of Wands as a new person's intentions

For someone new, this card describes someone who has made an effort and is now watching for your response. If you have been slow to respond, this is the card telling you they noticed. If you want them, send a ship back.

What their intentions look like in action

Look for effort followed by a pause: they reached out, suggested something, made a gesture, and have since been quieter, watching. A Three of Wands intention is visible as a wait after an offer. The wait is for you.

What to record before drawing again

Keep three short notes: the question you asked, what the person has already put toward you, and what you have sent back. If the third note is empty, that is the answer the card is pointing at.

For comparison, the Two of Wands as intentions and the Eight of Wands as intentions describe different intentions. The the Three of Wands card meaning page covers the card in full, and the Three of Wands as timing and the Three of Wands 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.