#284 · Wednesday, 16 September 2026

Ladder answer

• SPORT 5 letters
• PROTEST 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• POSTERITY 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

SPORT sits inside PROTEST, which sits inside POSTERITY — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: PTSRO · PEORSTT · ETPTIYSOR.

LockCode answer: 6589

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 3586: 2 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 3 of 3, 5, 8, 6 are in the code.
2. 8623: 0 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 2 of 8, 6, 2, 3 are in the code.
3. 0625: 0 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 2 of 0, 6, 2, 5 are in the code.
4. 0825: 0 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 2 of 0, 8, 2, 5 are in the code.
5. After all clues, 8 codes remain possible.

With 8 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: UMBRELLA