#158 · Wednesday, 13 May 2026

Ladder answer

• COUNT 5 letters
• AUCTION 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• EDUCATION 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

COUNT sits inside AUCTION, which sits inside EDUCATION — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: OUCNT · OTUNAIC · ADCEOTNIU.

LockCode answer: 3706

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 0376 has every digit of the code — only the order is wrong.
2. 5821 scored nothing, so 5, 8, 2, 1 are all out.
3. 8512 scored nothing, so 8, 5, 1, 2 are all out.
4. 7685: 0 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 2 of 7, 6, 8, 5 are in the code.
5. After all clues, 4 codes remain possible.

With 4 candidates left, a good second guess splits them by feedback so the third guess is forced. Read the LockCode strategy guide for the method.