#88 · Wednesday, 4 March 2026

Ladder answer

• TRADE 5 letters
• CREATED 7 letters — adds two letters to the rung below
• EXTRACTED 9 letters — adds two letters to the rung below

TRADE sits inside CREATED, which sits inside EXTRACTED — the two letters added at each rung are the whole puzzle. Scrambles shown that day: TERAD · ETAEDRC · EETDTXRCA.

LockCode answer: 9160

The clues and what each one tells you:

1. 1209: 0 in the right place, 3 in the wrong place — 3 of 1, 2, 0, 9 are in the code.
2. 0316: 0 in the right place, 3 in the wrong place — 3 of 0, 3, 1, 6 are in the code.
3. 2519: 0 in the right place, 2 in the wrong place — 2 of 2, 5, 1, 9 are in the code.
4. 5142: 1 in the right place, 0 in the wrong place — 1 of 5, 1, 4, 2 are in the code.
5. After all clues, 4 codes remain possible.

With 4 candidates left, a good second guess splits them by feedback so the third guess is forced. Read the LockCode strategy guide for the method.