#205 · Monday, 29 June 2026

Ladder answer

• THEIR 5 letters
• NEITHER 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• INHERITED 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

THEIR sits inside NEITHER, which sits inside INHERITED — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: TIREH · INHEERT · IRHDEETIN.

LockCode answer: 2179

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 0139: 2 in the right place, 0 in the wrong place — 2 of 0, 1, 3, 9 are in the code.
2. 0634 scored nothing, so 0, 6, 3, 4 are all out.
3. 9837: 0 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 2 of 9, 8, 3, 7 are in the code.
4. 8514: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 8, 5, 1, 4 are in the code.
5. After all clues, 2 codes remain possible.

With 2 candidates left, a good second guess splits them by feedback so the third guess is forced. Read the LockCode strategy guide for the method.