How to ask tarot a question: a quiz
Twelve questions on wording tarot questions: open versus closed, the common mistakes and how to fix them, and what not to ask. Five random ones per run.
- 5 questions
- ≈ 2 min
- +5 bronze keys for a flawless run
What does this tarot question quiz check?
Half of a good reading is the question. This quiz checks whether you can tell an open question from a closed one, spot the usual wording mistakes and turn a weak question into one that works. Every answer rests on the rules Tayna uses when it reads the cards.
Each run draws five of twelve questions. Many are small scenarios: you see someone's wording and have to say what's wrong with it. A short explanation follows each answer and a full review closes the run.
Open or closed question?
A closed question expects yes or no: 'Will they text me?' It's handy when there are only two outcomes, and there's a dedicated one-card Yes or no spread for it. An open question starts with what, how or why and leaves the cards room for causes and detail. 'Will we make up?' gives you a coin toss; 'What would help us make up?' gives you a map.
The best question is nearly always a little about you, even when it concerns someone else. The cards see most clearly what you can influence, so 'What do I need to understand about us?' works better than 'What are they hiding?'
Common wording mistakes
Split two questions in one into two readings; one spread answers one question. Narrow an overly broad 'What's in store for me?' with an area of life and a time frame. A verdict-style question like 'Why does nothing ever work for me?' sounds kinder and more honest as 'What's stopping me from finishing this?' Instead of asking for an exact date, ask what will speed things up and what's holding them back.
Before the reading, ask yourself three things: what do I really want to know, is there room for my own step here, and can I accept any answer? If the last answer is no, settle down first.
Mind the limits too: health, legal and financial decisions belong with a professional. If you feel uneasy but have no words yet, start with the Card of the day or What is happening now.
Try the What to ask tarot spread
All questions and answers
Open after you play: the full question set with right answers and explanations.
1. Which of these tarot questions is open?
Right answer: What would help us make up?
Open questions start with what, how or why and leave the cards room for causes and detail.
2. How many questions do you ask in a single spread?
Right answer: Just one
A spread is built around one question, and every position answers it from a different angle.
3. The question is 'What date will they call?' How should you rework it?
Right answer: What speeds or slows it?
Cards handle calendars poorly. Instead of a date, ask what speeds things up and what holds them back.
4. You must say your tarot question out loud.
Right answer: Myth
What matters is that the question is clear to you. On Tayna you just type it, and the reading uses your words.
5. 'What's in store for me?' is too broad. What should you add?
Right answer: An area and a time
An area and a time frame give the answer edges: 'What awaits me at work this month?'
6. You ask about work and the spread is all Cups. What might that mean?
Right answer: It's about feelings
Cards often answer the deeper worry: you ask about work, but the real issue is emotional.
7. You know you couldn't accept just any answer right now. What does Tayna advise?
Right answer: Calm down first
If you can't accept any answer yet, settle down first and only then draw the cards.
8. The question is 'Why does nothing ever work for me?' What's wrong with it?
Right answer: It's a verdict
It sounds like an accusation. Kinder and more honest: 'What's stopping me from finishing this now?'
9. What does Tayna advise against asking the cards about?
Right answer: Health and the law
Health, legal and financial decisions belong with a professional, not with a spread.
10. An open question leaves the cards more room to answer.
Right answer: True
An open question can't be answered in one word, so the cards can speak about causes and your next step.
11. You feel uneasy but have no question. Where should you start?
Right answer: Card of the day
When words won't come, the Card of the day or What is happening now will show you where to look.
12. The question is 'What are they hiding?' What should it become?
Right answer: What should I understand about us?
Asking about someone's mind without you in it gives little. Framed through your bond, it helps you.