as in negligence
the nonperformance of an assigned or expected action
a default in the repayment of a bank loan
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of default
Sarah Jones, Sourcing Journal, 3 Feb. 2026
Your husband is correct that wine has become merely a default offering, especially as host presents.
—Judith Martin, Sun Sentinel, 3 Feb. 2026
Margie Warrell, Forbes.com, 23 Jan. 2026
Kiritsis claimed that Meridian steered retailers away from the property, forcing him to default on the loan.
—Olivia B. Waxman, Time, 9 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for default
Noun
Our mission is to make donation the default, not the exception.
—Sarah Jones, Sourcing Journal, 3 Feb. 2026
Your husband is correct that wine has become merely a default offering, especially as host presents.
—Judith Martin, Sun Sentinel, 3 Feb. 2026
Verb
Under pressure, our brains default to simplicity.
—Margie Warrell, Forbes.com, 23 Jan. 2026
Kiritsis claimed that Meridian steered retailers away from the property, forcing him to default on the loan.
—Olivia B. Waxman, Time, 9 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for default
Recent Examples of Synonyms for default
Noun
-
Plaintiffs in the Los Angeles bellwether and related cases have sought to get around those protections by relying on claims about corporate negligence and flawed product design, similar to those brought against opioid maker Purdue Pharma in recent years and Big Tobacco in the 1990s.—
Sonja Sharp,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Feb. 2026
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Google similarly denies any claims of negligence.—
Nancy Dillon,
Rolling Stone,
9 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Still, even inside the awards-season bubble, the turmoil surrounding the movie business, the country and the world beyond it was hard to ignore.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Feb. 2026
-
They're exhausted by the constant airing of grievances having little to do with what's actually going on in the country, and by the broad generalizations about, well, everything, that ignore context, nuance and facts to promote a political viewpoint.—
Brenda Looper,
Arkansas Online,
11 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Because of Tuesday’s rule failure, any bills tucked into that measure sit at a standstill.—
Rachel Schilke,
The Washington Examiner,
11 Feb. 2026
-
The death certificate listed Fisher’s cause of death as septic shock, a bacterial infection, acute kidney failure and pneumonia.—
Theresa Clift,
Sacbee.com,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Then, as Musk has been prone to do, the former presidential adviser disregarded much of his previous explanation and said that building a civilization on Mars was still an option, just that building on the Moon is SpaceX’s current priority.—
Washington Examiner Staff,
The Washington Examiner,
9 Feb. 2026
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Decades of pandering to public employee unions, bloating of bureaucratic staffs, and disregarding voter wishes regarding the outsourcing of local services and limiting pensions have been identified.—
U T Readers,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
6 Feb. 2026
Noun
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State child welfare workers declined to open investigations into abuse or neglect in these instances, yet referred them to law enforcement anyway.—
Shoshana Walter,
CBS News,
10 Feb. 2026
-
Several cool props gestured to historical infrastructural neglect and botched Hurricane Maria recovery efforts.—
Craig Jenkins,
Vulture,
9 Feb. 2026
Verb
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One Facebook friend of Bill’s previously questioned why his name was omitted as a spouse in the obituary.—
Sarah Jones,
PEOPLE,
3 Feb. 2026
-
Top players omitted from the list were not nominated.—
Charles Baggarly,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
3 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The Fortune 500 is littered with examples of wanna-be CEOs who left their companies after being passed over for the top job.—
Claire Zillman,
Fortune,
7 Feb. 2026
-
Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores, one of the best assistant coaches in the league, was once again passed over for a coaching job.—
Antwan Staley,
New York Daily News,
6 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The right felt slighted, again, this time as the victim of a great left-wing conspiracy to turn football’s biggest night against them.—
Lorraine Ali,
Los Angeles Times,
4 Feb. 2026
-
Did Probst feel slighted by all the backlash?—
David Canfield,
Vanity Fair,
20 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Default.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/default. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
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