#238 · Saturday, 1 August 2026

Ladder answer

• ANGEL 5 letters
• SEALING 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• RELEASING 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

ANGEL sits inside SEALING, which sits inside RELEASING — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: NLAGE · SGINLAE · EIRANELGS.

LockCode answer: 4268

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 4563: 2 in the right place, 0 in the wrong place — 2 of 4, 5, 6, 3 are in the code.
2. 8219: 1 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 2 of 8, 2, 1, 9 are in the code.
3. 9854: 0 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 2 of 9, 8, 5, 4 are in the code.
4. 5871: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 5, 8, 7, 1 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.