The Two of Swords Yes or No: Unclear, Until You Take the Blindfold Off

Written by Chaya the Medium.

The Two of Swords refuses to answer because the person asking has not chosen. Here is how I read it for yes or no questions, upright and reversed.

If you want the short answer, the Two of Swords is unclear. In a yes or no draw the upright card says the question is in stalemate and that the answer is being held off by a decision the person will not make. It is not a no. It is a card that hands the question back.

This is a card of unclear as a blindfold chosen on purpose. Two swords, perfectly balanced, and a sea moving behind someone who will not turn round.

Is the Two of Swords a yes or a no?

Upright, I read the Two of Swords as unclear, neither a clean yes nor a clean no. Reversed, I read it as unclear, neither a clean yes nor a clean no. My free yes or no tarot draw uses the Major Arcana only, so if you want a quick draw, use that; these Minor Arcana values are the ones I apply when a full deck is in play.

Tina Gong's the Two of Swords guide at Labyrinthos associates the upright card with indecision, stalemate, a difficult choice and avoidance. Brigit Esselmont's yes or no tarot overview at Biddy Tarot notes that readers assign yes and no values differently, which is true, and it is why I state mine rather than pretend there is one correct table.

Why the upright card reads this way

I read the Two of Swords as unclear because the card is about avoidance in balance: the crossed blades, the covered eyes, the stillness. When a question gets this card, the honest answer is that the person asking already holds both options and is refusing to look at either, and a yes or no cannot be given to someone who has not decided what they are asking for.

The useful move is to notice that the question is really "which", and that the card is saying the choosing is yours.

The Two of Swords reversed as yes or no

Reversed, I read the Two of Swords as still unclear, for a different reason. The reversal describes the stalemate breaking into confusion or overwhelm rather than clarity, or a decision made by default because the deadline passed.

If you drew the Two of Swords reversed, ask whether a choice has actually been made or whether circumstances have made it for you. Neither produces a clean yes, and the second tends to produce regret.

The Two of Swords yes or no in a love question

In a love question, the Two of Swords upright describes a person, often the one asking, who is torn and has stopped looking. It cannot say yes to a relationship while one of you is blindfolded. Reversed, it describes the moment the blindfold comes off and the feelings flood in, which is clearer and not always calmer.

The Two of Swords yes or no for work and money

For work and money, the Two of Swords is the card of two offers and no answer, two options and a month of lists. It is unclear until one is put down. Reversed, it is the deadline deciding for you, and a prompt to decide before it does.

When a yes or no draw is the wrong tool

The Two of Swords is the card that most clearly says the question has not been decided by the person asking. Drawing again before deciding produces the same blindfold. A single card answers a single, well-formed question. If the question is really three questions, or is about another person's choices, a yes or no draw will give you a confident answer to the wrong thing. My guide to a one question psychic reading explains how I handle questions that need more than one card.

What to record before drawing again

Keep three short notes: the exact question you asked, the two options exactly as they stand, and a decision date you will keep. Ask the yes or no question about one option after that date.

For comparison, the Hanged Man yes or no and the Seven of Cups yes or no answer differently. The the Two of Swords card meaning page covers the card in full, and the Two of Swords as timing and the Two of Swords as feelings cover the two other questions people most often ask of it. For a personal interpretation, my guide to an online psychic reading explains how readings work, and the three-card tarot listing and customer reviews are worth reading before deciding whether to order.