#46 · Wednesday, 21 January 2026

Ladder answer

• GRAIN 5 letters
• WARNING 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• ANSWERING 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

GRAIN sits inside WARNING, which sits inside ANSWERING — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: GARIN · RGWIANN · NENWGSRIA.

LockCode answer: 1740

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 1642: 2 in the right place, 0 in the wrong place — 2 of 1, 6, 4, 2 are in the code.
2. 9768: 1 in the right place, 0 in the wrong place — 1 of 9, 7, 6, 8 are in the code.
3. 3964: 0 in the right place, 1 in the wrong place — 1 of 3, 9, 6, 4 are in the code.
4. 7186: 0 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 2 of 7, 1, 8, 6 are in the code.
5. After all clues, 5 codes remain possible.

With 5 candidates left, a good second guess splits them by feedback so the third guess is forced. Read the LockCode strategy guide for the method.