The Eight of Wands is depicted as eight flying staves that appear as if they are suspended in the air. Some may look at them as wands that are blossoming that are traveling at maximum speed. The background where they travel through is a clear sky which represents that there is likely nothing that will stand in the way of these making it to their destination. It shows a majestic landscape with a river that is streaming, the water breathing life to the image. The wands also appear like they are about to land, which signals the end of a long journey.

Upright Meaning Guide
Eight of Wands Upright Tarot Card Key Meanings:
Hastiness, speed, progress, movement, action, rushing, exciting times, travel, freedom, holiday, holiday romances, taking off, gaining momentum, ahead, thinking on your feet, sudden action, hard work paying off, results, solutions, energetic, positive, infatuation, obsession, being swept off your feet, jumping in

General Meaning and Interpretation (Upright)

In a general context, the Eight of Wands represents hastiness, speed, rushing, progress, movement, and action. It is a Minor Arcana card of sudden action, excitement, exciting times, travel, freedom, holidays and holiday romances. Whatever you turn your hand to at the moment will take off at great speed and gain momentum. You will be feeling positive and energetic. You will be thinking on your feet, seeing results and finding solutions. Your hard work will be paying off and you will be ahead of the game. The Eight of Wands also represents infatuation, obsession and getting carried away or being swept off your feet.

Love & Relationships (Upright)

In a love Tarot spread, if you are in a relationship the Eight of Wands is a good omen indicating progress, exciting times, infatuation and being swept off your feet. Whether the relationship is new or you’ve been together for years this Minor Arcana card brings a rush of love, excitement, sex, and passion. It is a sign of the relationship moving forward at great speed and you and your partner jumping in with both feet. If you are single, the Eight of Wands signifies meeting someone who will sweep you off your feet. You may become infatuated or obsessed with this person and the romance will take off quickly. It can also represent a holiday romance or meeting someone while traveling.

Money & Career (Upright)

In a career Tarot spread, the Eight of Wands can represent work-related travel or things taking off a great speed. You may find yourself going places in the physical sense of attending meetings or overseas conferences or you may find your career is going places! There is a sense of speed and energy with this card so expect a fast-paced, high energy work environment when it appears. If you are in business, a new venture could take off much sooner than you thought it would. However, this Minor Arcana card can also signify hastiness so be careful not to jump into things without researching them. You may need to be patient and allow situations to play out a bit longer before you take action. In a financial Tarot reading, the Eight of Wands represents a lot of movement in your finances so you may have your finger in a lot of pies or a lot of money coming in and out when it appears in your Tarot spread. Just remember this card also warns you not to be too hasty so avoid high-risk investments and overspending when it appears. There is no need to rush even though you might feel like your money is burning a hole in your pocket!

Health (Upright)

In a health Tarot reading, the Eight of Wands can represent a rapid recovery from an injury or illness. It can also represent being very physically active or seeing a newly implemented diet or exercise regime produce results quickly. However, it can also indicate an impending medical emergency that needs to be treated quickly.

Spirituality (Upright)

In a spiritual context, the Eight of Wands indicates that you should be experiencing in a big upswing in your positive energy. If you have been trying to develop your psychic or healing abilities you should find yourself gaining momentum and progressing quickly.

Reversed Meaning Guide
Eight of Wands Reversed Tarot Card Key Meanings:
Slowness, lack of speed/ movement/ action/ results, slow progress, delayed/ cancelled/ returning from travel or holidays, restriction, bad timing, losing momentum, missed opportunities, late start, unfinished business, lack of energy, negativity, lack of romance, panicked, hysterical, impatient, impulsive, out of control

General meaning and interpretation (Reversed)

In a general context, the Eight of Wands reversed represents slowness, slow progress and lack of speed, movement or action. When reversed, it is a Minor Arcana card of restriction, returning from travels or delayed or canceled travel or holidays. It can signify late starts, bad timing, losing momentum, missed opportunities and unfinished business. Whatever you turn your hand to at the moment probably won’t work out the way you want it to. You may be feeling negativity or a lack of energy when it appears in your Tarot spread. The Eight of Wands reversed also represents being hysterical, impatient, impulsive and panicked or out of control. It can represent dislike or a lack of passion, excitement or romance. It can also signify being grounded.

Love & Relationships (Reversed)

In a love Tarot spread, if you are in a relationship the Eight of Wands reversed is not a good omen indicating a lack of progress or slow progress, lack of romance and a relationship losing its momentum. Whether the relationship is new or you’ve been together for years this Minor Arcana card reversed can represent a lack of energy, excitement, sex or passion. It is a sign that the relationship is not moving forward at the speed you or your partner would like it to as one or both of you is hesitating. If you are single, the Eight of Wands reversed indicates that you may meet someone whom you will initially be infatuated or obsessed with but the relationship will turn sour and you will soon begin to dislike this person intensely. If you’ve had a holiday romance, reality will kick in and you’ll wonder what you saw in them.

Money & Career (Reversed)

In a career Tarot spread, the Eight of Wands reversed can represent things taking off too quickly or not quick enough and canceled travel. You may find meetings or overseas conferences are canceled or that your career is just not progressing at the rate you hoped it would. You may be experiencing setbacks, cutbacks or lack of opportunities for promotion. Alternatively, you may find your career has taken off far too rapidly and you are struggling to keep up with your workload! If you are in business, a venture could be failing to take off or taking off very slowly. Alternatively, you may have so much interest that you cannot keep up with demand. However, this Minor Arcana card can also signify poor timing and missed opportunities so you may be waiting too long to take action. In a financial Tarot reading, the Eight of Wands reversed represents slow progress in your finances. You may feel like you are not making money quickly enough and it’s taking you ages to save for things or reach the level of financial security you desire. Try to have some patience, these things take time. It can also indicate being extremely impulsive with money. Remember, a fool and their money is easily parted!

Health (Reversed)

In a health Tarot reading, the Eight of Wands reversed can represent a slow recovery from an injury/illness or health suddenly taking a nosedive. It can also represent being inactive or too active leading to fatigue or a newly implemented diet or exercise regime not producing results as quickly as you hoped. It can also signify an illness aggressively taking hold.

Spirituality (Reversed)

In a spiritual context, the Eight of Wands reversed indicates that you may be experiencing a lack of energy or being affected by negative energy when it appears. If you have been trying to develop your psychic or healing abilities you may find that things are not progressing as quickly as you would like. Remember that these abilities will develop at the pace they are meant to. Try to relax and enjoy the journey, you will get there.

Reference:
Labyrinthos, 2019, 11/13/19, (https://labyrinthos.co/blogs/tarot-card-meanings-list/eight-of-wands-meaning-tarot-card-meanings?_pos=10&_sid=18b5a7f6f&_ss=r)
Lisa, 2019, 11/13/19, (https://www.thetarotguide.com/eight-of-wands)