#294 · Saturday, 26 September 2026

Ladder answer

• BEING 5 letters
• BEARING 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• EMBARKING 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

BEING sits inside BEARING, which sits inside EMBARKING — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: BENGI · IGERBAN · GIREKNMBA.

LockCode answer: 2705

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 4785: 2 in the right place, 0 in the wrong place — 2 of 4, 7, 8, 5 are in the code.
2. 4853: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 4, 8, 5, 3 are in the code.
3. 9630: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 9, 6, 3, 0 are in the code.
4. 6093: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 6, 0, 9, 3 are in the code.
5. After all clues, 12 codes remain possible.

With 12 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: CLOVER