#20 · Friday, 26 December 2025

Ladder answer

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

TUNED sits inside STUDENT, which sits inside ENTRUSTED — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: TUEDN · DNETUST · NEUSDRTTE.

LockCode answer: 5104

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 5403: 2 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 3 of 5, 4, 0, 3 are in the code.
2. 6972 scored nothing, so 6, 9, 7, 2 are all out.
3. 9861: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 9, 8, 6, 1 are in the code.
4. 1239: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 1, 2, 3, 9 are in the code.
5. After all clues, 8 codes remain possible.

With 8 candidates left, a good second guess splits them by feedback so the third guess is forced. Read the LockCode strategy guide for the method.