#16 · Monday, 22 December 2025

Ladder answer

• STATE 5 letters
• STARTER 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• STREETCAR 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

STATE sits inside STARTER, which sits inside STREETCAR — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: ESATT · RERATTS · RERESTATC.

LockCode answer: 9631

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 1635: 2 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 3 of 1, 6, 3, 5 are in the code.
2. 5831: 2 in the right place, 0 in the wrong place — 2 of 5, 8, 3, 1 are in the code.
3. 7516: 0 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 2 of 7, 5, 1, 6 are in the code.
4. 7829: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 7, 8, 2, 9 are in the code.
5. After all clues, 3 codes remain possible.

With 3 candidates left, a good second guess splits them by feedback so the third guess is forced. Read the LockCode strategy guide for the method.