Pisces Personality Traits, Dates, and Compatibility

From mid-February to mid-March, the world can feel quiet as we collectively dip into hibernation. Months of bundling up and going to bat against snow, sleet, or storms can take a toll and stir us to lean into our imaginations, dreaming of a warm respite from the wintertime slog. We might also embrace escapism and all the opportunities to celebrate, from St. Patrick's Day to March Madness and the Jewish festival holiday Purim. This dreamy, dramatic, in-your-feelings season is brought to you by Pisces. Annually, between February 19 to March 20, the sun moves through the twelfth and final sign of the zodiac, Pisces, symbolized by the Fish.

Pisces season is a time for hazy thinking, getting caught up on Zs, and working through deep-rooted feelings that seem to dovetail with the gray skies that tend to fill the weather report this time of year. These traits are owed to Pisces' ruling planet, Neptune, which oversees spirituality, fantasies, escapism, dreams, intuition, psychic ability, and magic.

A few famous Piscean dreamers and artists: Rihanna, Drew Barrymore, Eva Mendes, Rashida Jones, Olivia Wilde, Emily Blunt, Lupita Nyong'o, and Rebel Wilson. These celebs are astrologically wired to channel their deeply-felt empathy and creativity into their work and efforts to promote compassion.

Here, everything you need to know about the emotional, expressive water sign.

Pisces Personality Traits

The artist of the zodiac

Those born between February 19 and March 20 can generally assume that their sun sign is Pisces. (It's not definitive, because the sun moves between signs on different days annually.) Also note that while we tend to refer to ourselves as our sun sign, it's just one detail of a natal chart, which is basically a unique snapshot of the sky when you were born. But it's a detail that helps color your core sense of self, identity, personal style, self-esteem, and confidence.

Typical sun in Pisces traits include being compassionate, romantic, artistic, intensely empathic, and sensitive. They're the obvious creatives of the zodiac; when they channel their emotions into their favorite art form, they feel more centered and enlightened. This could mean they're into, and perhaps even excel at, a wide variety of forms of creative self-expression — from dance to music to writing or reading poetry and acting on stage or screen. (In fact, astrology holds that the motion picture industry is a Neptunian realm.) And because they feel so very deeply and might struggle with blue moods, they might also be drawn to psychology and metaphysical or energetic practices (think Reiki, acupuncture, or aromatherapy). They also tend to have an innate psychic ability.

These characteristics reflect many themes covered by the Twelfth House of Spirituality, which Pisces rules. While some astrologers think of it as the "trash bin of the zodiac," because they say it encompasses everything that the previous 11 houses don't, it's a bit more nuanced and complex than that. It deals with your true, deep-rooted identity, your subconscious, and your spiritual side. It covers how you handle the hardest-to-heal emotional wounds that you're meant to work through and evolve from over the course of your life. It covers psychology, secrets, hidden weaknesses, private affairs, dreams, institutions, jails, and hospitals.

The mutable water sign

Every sign is assigned a quality (cardinal, mutable, or fixed), which explains the sign's basic energy. There's a cardinal, mutable, and fixed sign within every element (fire, earth, air, water). Pisces is the mutable one of the water group, meaning they are flexible, open to going with the flow, and typically willing to hear all sides of an issue before making a decision, much like Virgo (earth), as well as Gemini (air) and Sagittarius (fire).

Pisces’ best personality traits:

Compassionate, artistic, deeply emotional, especially empathic, at least a little bit psychic, and often inclined to throw themselves into caring for others at all costs, the Pisces in your life are some of the most magical people you'll ever come in contact with. When it comes to their artistic impulses, sensitivity, and spirituality, they're operating on a whole other level. (In fact, they might find they can't help but pursue a path as an unofficial or full-on professional psychic, astrologer, or medium.) They swim in the deep end of emotions and psychology as a rule, and whatever energy they're around, they tend to soak up like a sponge. This could mean they carry deep emotional wounds through life, but they also excel at channeling that pain into therapeutic, creative outlets. They're also true artists who tend to not only have a deep, lifelong appreciation of film, theater, dance, music, etc., but who can create it almost effortlessly, as if they were born with a special gift. They're the longtime friend whose shoulder you can sob on without any fear of judgment. And they're the healer who you seem to have found at precisely the right time, who intuitively understands what you're going through and whose warm, spiritual presence can feel like a soothing balm in and of itself.

Pisces’ worst personality traits:

The mutable water sign's empathic nature is a double-edged sword, as all of those deeply-felt emotions — many of them not even a Pisces' own — and harbored wounds can pile up, setting a gloomy tone. Prone to take a passive approach to life — versus feeling like they have the power to make things happen — the Fish might find themselves wading in the depths of hopelessness, despair, self-pity, and pessimism. And if they struggle to set boundaries, they might feel like they're constantly being taken advantage of for caring about and for others. They might be inclined to paint themselves a martyr. All of this can feed into a propensity toward problematic forms of escapism (like addiction or burying their head in the sand when there's a troubling issue that requires action on their part). Their Neptunian influence can also lead to a general spaciness, and they might struggle to accept or discern fact from fiction.

What Pisces Are Like in Love & Bed

Pisces’ romance style

If your date is sensitive, has a penchant for painting or reading poetry or writing screenplays, meditates, and is proposing that you check out a concert in the park versus going to a fancy restaurant, you might just be about to connect with a Pisces. The water sign is an old-school and intuitive romantic, which appeals to anyone who doesn't mind wading in the deep end of all the emotions.

If you're looking to connect with a Pisces in a lasting way, you'll need to be comfortable with the fact that they struggle to take charge and tend to embrace a quiet, more passive flow in life. On the other hand, their Neptunian style means wearing rose-colored glasses and sweeping you off your feet with their dreamy, idealistic perspective.

Pisces’ sexual style

They'll be the first ones to suggest spending the weekend bingeing a favorite fantasy franchise (like Game of Thrones), wine tasting, experimenting with CBD mocktails (or lube), or planning a beachy getaway that feels like a time-out from the daily grind. Taking in or creating art with their lover is another form of foreplay, as is spending any time near or in water. And they might also adore setting the stage for lovemaking with a bit of pampering, like a couples' massage — complete with aromatherapy oils and energy-healing crystals, of course. And because of their mutable nature, they might enjoy taking the submissive role when experimenting with power play. Like all water signs, though, feeling emotionally in sync with their partner is an instant turn-on and a straight shot to fostering intense intimacy.