#160 · Friday, 15 May 2026

Ladder answer

• SHOWN 5 letters
• SHOWING 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• SHOWERING 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

SHOWN sits inside SHOWING, which sits inside SHOWERING — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: WNHSO · GNWOIHS · ROGISHWEN.

LockCode answer: 0869

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 0814: 2 in the right place, 0 in the wrong place — 2 of 0, 8, 1, 4 are in the code.
2. 7419: 1 in the right place, 0 in the wrong place — 1 of 7, 4, 1, 9 are in the code.
3. 3954: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 3, 9, 5, 4 are in the code.
4. 1650: 0 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 2 of 1, 6, 5, 0 are in the code.
5. After all clues, 6 codes remain possible.

With 6 candidates left, a good second guess splits them by feedback so the third guess is forced. Read the LockCode strategy guide for the method.