#214 · Wednesday, 8 July 2026

Ladder answer

• TOPIC 5 letters
• OPTICAL 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• COMPLAINT 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

TOPIC sits inside OPTICAL, which sits inside COMPLAINT — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: OPICT · LOPCATI · ONTMIPLCA.

LockCode answer: 7146

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 7102: 2 in the right place, 0 in the wrong place — 2 of 7, 1, 0, 2 are in the code.
2. 7418: 1 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 3 of 7, 4, 1, 8 are in the code.
3. 0217: 0 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 2 of 0, 2, 1, 7 are in the code.
4. 9825 scored nothing, so 9, 8, 2, 5 are all out.
5. After all clues, 4 codes remain possible.

With 4 candidates left, a good second guess splits them by feedback so the third guess is forced. Read the LockCode strategy guide for the method.