Five of Cups as Love Outcome (Upright & Reversed) Tarot Card Meaning

The Five of Cups is the card of grief, loss, sadness, and disappointment. This card shows a man crying over three knocked down cups. He is so absorbed in his loss that he doesn’t see that he has two upright cups behind him. He is missing the opportunities that are still available to him. 

The Five of Cups reminds us that grief is a natural part of life. It is normal to grieve over our disappointments and failures. Challenges and losses are part of the journey. However, it is important to not be so wrapped up in the negative that we do not see the positive in our situation. The Five of Cups reminds us to authentically grieve, but also to see how we can use this moment as a learning opportunity to move forward.

Upright Five of Cups as Love Outcome

If you are asking about what is the outcome of a relationship, and you draw the Five of Cups, that means that there are regrets lingering in the background of your relationship. This card is astrologically associated with Mars in Scorpio, which can be an incredibly intense and sharp energy. This is a card of crying over spilled milk. Perhaps something happened in your recent past or early on in your relationship, and those things are still haunting you to this day. Instead of dwelling on it, is it possible for you to try to heal the issue with your person? If your person did something to you, they are still not over the guilt of putting you through what they did to you.

The Five of Cups as love outcome is a sign of regretting something that happened in the relationship, and never getting over it. There is a sense that something has tainted the relationship beyond repair. But many things in life, although painful, shouldn’t be given the power to “taint” whole relationship. When we are in our egos, our instinct is to be unforgiving, but sometimes forgiveness is something that we need to do for ourselves rather than the other person. Is there a way that you could move past this, at least just for your own sake?

If you are wondering about a potential relationship, the Five of Cups as love outcome means you need to be cautious about a tendency to be vengeful, resentful, and unforgiving. With its astrological association with Mars in Scorpio, emotions can run very deep in this relationship. Your person could still be regretful or bitter over a past relationship. Or, alternatively, this could be you. Try not to bring past baggage from previous relationships into this new relationship. Punishing a current partner for the mistakes and missteps of previous partners is extremely unfair.

If you are in a new relationship, the Five of Cups as love outcome means both of you could have issues that need to be healed before embarking in this new relationship. Another thing that this card speaks of is focusing too much on the negatives while ignoring the positives. Drawing this card in a reading about a new relationship advises us to be more grateful. Understand that nobody is perfect, and everybody is just trying to do their best. On the bright side, this card is astrologically associated with Mars in Scorpio, which indicates excellent sex. Mars in Scorpio is also a sign of a deep connection and understanding of each other’s psyche.

If you are in an existing relationship, the Five of Cups as love outcome means too much focus on what’s going wrong in the relationship rather than what’s going right. In traditional depictions of this card, a man is focused on cups of spilled wine, disregarding the full cups of wine that he still has left. This card asks us to show gratitude, and focus on the positives. If you’re going through a rough patch, and you’re wondering, “is this relationship still salvageable?” The answer is a solid yes! With its astrological association to Mars in Scorpio, you connect well sexually and you just “get” each other instinctively.

If you are currently in separation with each other, the Five of Cups as love outcome means hopelessness and overall pessimism. If you are separated by distance, your person is way too negatively focused on the setbacks that come with being in a long-distance relationship. Instead of being grateful that they can have time to video call you, for example, they might endlessly complain about not being able to see you in person. If you are inquiring about an ex you are interested in reconciling with, they are going through a lot of grief and loss about the break up. They wish the relationship never ended. If you were to reconcile, they would try their best to work on healing the relationship.

Reversed Five of Cups as Love Outcome

If you are asking about what is the outcome of a relationship, and you draw the Five of Cups reversed, that means that your person is ready to let go of past loss and suffering. If something happened in the past, your person is trying to focus on what they can do to heal the relationship. They are also determined to focus on the positives. Drawing this card is always a reminder to focus on what we can control, and allow the Universe to take care of the rest. You or your person could finally be coming to terms with grief. Focus on creating the future you want with your person, rather than dwelling on the past.

The Five of Cups reversed as love outcome is a sign of starting on an “almost clean” slate. You or your person are not fully healed from your past relationship baggage, but you are determined to heal from it. This card warns us that there might be some hiccups along the way, but they’re trying their best. Your person is over their ex, but they might get triggered due to past experiences. This is not a completely hopeless situation that can’t be salvaged. So try to be compassionate both toward your person and to yourself.

If you are wondering about a potential relationship, the Five of Cups reversed as love outcome means that even though it doesn’t look promising initially, this relationship still has potential. This relationship may have started off on the wrong foot, leaving you with a bad taste in your mouth. You may even have attempted a relationship with this person in the past, but it didn’t work out. Or, there could be something about this person’s past that you find hard to accept. This card is telling you to keep an open mind and give this relationship a chance. There will be work that needs to be done, but it’ll be worth the effort.

If you are in a new relationship, the Five of Cups reversed as love outcome means your person has let go of past baggage. This card, when drawn in the reverse, is the card you want to see if you’re asking whether your partner is over their ex or not. This doesn’t mean your person is healed from whatever ordeal they had to go through with their ex. Your person might still get triggered occasionally, or show signs of trauma. But your person is more focused on the future that they can build with you. They are no longer emotionally invested in past situations.

If you are in an existing relationship, the Five of Cups reversed as love outcome means both of you are moving forward from past bumps on the road in your relationship. No relationship is perfect, we all make mistakes. And although drawing this card indicates that the incident was painful for both of you, you’re both determined to focus on the future. You or your person could be apologizing or forgiving one another. You’re also doing the right thing by focusing on what’s going right in your relationship rather than what’s going wrong. With its astrological association with Mars in Scorpio, this card indicates deep transformation at the soul level.

If you are currently in separation with each other, the Five of Cups reversed as love outcome means focusing on the positive and the future. If you are separated by distance, your person is in a more optimistic mindset right now. Perhaps they were dwelling on the challenges of being in a long distance relationship, but now they are just working on making it work. If you are inquiring about an ex that you’re interested in reconciling with, they have let go of past hurts. They’re no longer focus on the past or their regrets. Depending on other cards surrounding this card, they could have completely moved on, or may be open to reconciliation.

Conclusion

For love readings, the Five of Cups represents grief and loss. These challenges are a normal part of life and any relationship. It is not the fact that we have grief and loss that matters, but how we respond to it. The Five of Cups reminds us that we can turn our most difficult moments into learning opportunities. 

If you find yourself needing further clarity in your relationship matters that go beyond reading for yourself, Sibyl offers unlimited tarot readings on love & relationships, as a neutral and objective third party.