tarot
tarot Lexical Profile
tarot Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A specialized pack of 78 playing cards, comprising four suited pip sets and 22 symbolic trump cards (the Major Arcana), used since the late 18th century for divination, fortune-telling, and esoteric reflection.
"The art historian examined a hand-painted Renaissance tarot preserved in the museum's collection."
Any of a family of traditional trick-taking card games played with a 78-card deck containing a permanent suit of 21 trump cards and a special card called the Fool, originating in 15th-century Italy and still widely played in parts of continental Europe.
"In France, tarot remains a popular competitive card game played in clubs and cafés."
• Rhymes for tarot
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed in the late 16th century from French tarot, from Italian tarocchi, a word of uncertain ultimate origin that first appeared in northern Italy in the 15th century to name trick-taking card games before later becoming associated with cartomancy.