#280 · Saturday, 12 September 2026

Ladder answer

• UNDER 5 letters
• ROUNDED 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• ADJOURNED 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

UNDER sits inside ROUNDED, which sits inside ADJOURNED — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: ENDUR · UDORNED · DJUNDOREA.

LockCode answer: 7561

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 1756 has every digit of the code — only the order is wrong.
2. 2384 scored nothing, so 2, 3, 8, 4 are all out.
3. 2809 scored nothing, so 2, 8, 0, 9 are all out.
4. 0924 scored nothing, so 0, 9, 2, 4 are all out.
5. After all clues, 9 codes remain possible.

With 9 candidates left, a good second guess splits them by feedback so the third guess is forced. Read the LockCode strategy guide for the method.

Lumen answer: HEART