Default

noun
1.
failure to act; inaction or neglect:
They lost their best client by sheer default.
2.
failure to meet financial obligations.
3.
Law. failure to perform an act or obligation legally required, especially to appear in court or to plead at a time assigned.
4.
Sports. failure to arrive in time for, participate in, or complete a scheduled match.
5.
lack; want; absence.
6.
Computers. a value that a program or operating system assumes, or a course of action that a program or operating system will take, when the user or programmer specifies no overriding value or action.
verb (used without object)
7.
to fail in fulfilling or satisfying an engagement, claim, or obligation.
8.
to fail to meet financial obligations or to account properly for money in one’s care:
When he defaulted in his payments, the bank foreclosed on the car.
9.
Law. to fail to appear in court.
10.
Sports.

to fail to participate in or complete a match.
to lose a match by default.

verb (used with object)
11.
to fail to perform or pay:
to default a debt.
12.
to declare to be in default, especially legally:
The judge defaulted the defendant.
13.
Sports.

to fail to compete in (a scheduled game, race, etc.).
to lose by default.

14.
Law. to lose by failure to appear in court.
noun
1.
a failure to act, esp a failure to meet a financial obligation or to appear in a court of law at a time specified
2.
absence or lack
3.
by default, in the absence of opposition or a better alternative: he became prime minister by default
4.
in default of, through or in the lack or absence of
5.
(law) judgment by default, a judgment in the plaintiff’s favour when the defendant fails to plead or to appear
6.
lack, want, or need
7.
(computing) (also) (ˈdiːfɔːlt)

the preset selection of an option offered by a system, which will always be followed except when explicitly altered
(as modifier): default setting

verb
8.
(intransitive; often foll by on or in) to fail to make payment when due
9.
(intransitive) to fail to fulfil or perform an obligation, engagement, etc: to default in a sporting contest
10.
(law) to lose (a case) by failure to appear in court
11.
(transitive) to declare that (someone) is in default

default definition

Failure to pay a debt when it is due.
data
A value or thing to use when none is specified by the user. Defaults are important for making systems behave in a predictable way without the user having to give lots of “obvious” details.
For example: the default TCP/IP port for the HTTP protocol is 80, the Unix ls command does not list files whose names begin with “.”, the default number base in most contexts is 10 (decimal), the default filename extension for Microsoft Word documents is “.doc”.
(2009-02-20)
see: in default of