#172 · Wednesday, 27 May 2026

Ladder answer

• TUNED 5 letters
• STUDENT 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• UNSETTLED 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

TUNED sits inside STUDENT, which sits inside UNSETTLED — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: DETNU · TTDUNSE · UNLTDESET.

LockCode answer: 5768

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 5638: 2 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 3 of 5, 6, 3, 8 are in the code.
2. 0528: 1 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 2 of 0, 5, 2, 8 are in the code.
3. 7190: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 7, 1, 9, 0 are in the code.
4. 6521: 0 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 2 of 6, 5, 2, 1 are in the code.
5. After all clues, 5 codes remain possible.

With 5 candidates left, a good second guess splits them by feedback so the third guess is forced. Read the LockCode strategy guide for the method.