#259 · Saturday, 22 August 2026

Ladder answer

• TRAIN 5 letters
• PAINTER 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• PRINTABLE 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

TRAIN sits inside PAINTER, which sits inside PRINTABLE — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: ITARN · NIREPTA · PIRNBLAET.

LockCode answer: 6521

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 5196: 0 in the right place, 3 in the wrong place — 3 of 5, 1, 9, 6 are in the code.
2. 2145: 0 in the right place, 3 in the wrong place — 3 of 2, 1, 4, 5 are in the code.
3. 4275: 0 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 2 of 4, 2, 7, 5 are in the code.
4. 9846: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 9, 8, 4, 6 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.