#139 · Friday, 24 April 2026

Ladder answer

• SPEND 5 letters
• RESPOND 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• SPONSORED 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

SPEND sits inside RESPOND, which sits inside SPONSORED — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: PDNSE · SRNOEDP · DNSSPOERO.

LockCode answer: 8697

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 5637: 2 in the right place, 0 in the wrong place — 2 of 5, 6, 3, 7 are in the code.
2. 9578: 0 in the right place, 3 in the wrong place — 3 of 9, 5, 7, 8 are in the code.
3. 9587: 1 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 3 of 9, 5, 8, 7 are in the code.
4. 0853: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 0, 8, 5, 3 are in the code.
5. After all clues, 7 codes remain possible.

With 7 candidates left, a good second guess splits them by feedback so the third guess is forced. Read the LockCode strategy guide for the method.