SELECT-DEFAULT-WORDLIST(8)

📦
version 1.31.4 · 5 versions
, in ubuntu resolute, ubuntu stonking

💖 SELECT-DEFAULT-WORDLIST 💖

okay bestie, so like — this is select-default-wordlist(8), a section 8 system-admin page, and it does literally exactly what it says on the tin: it picks your default wordlist. iconic behavior, honestly. 🎀

✨ NAME ✨

select-default-wordlist — select default wordlist

no notes, it's giving exactly what it promises. 💅

🌸 SYNOPSIS 🌸

select-default-wordlist [options]

🦋 Options (all long only options)

heads up babes, there are no short flags here — long options only, periodt:

  • --set-default='regexp' — try 'regexp' to get a single match and set it as default. Fail otherwise. (yes, single. if it matches more than one thing it's throwing hands and bailing. 🙈)
  • --show-choices — show available choices to STDERR and exit.
  • --debug — enable debug mode. 🔥

💜 DESCRIPTION 💜

This program is responsible for selecting default wordlist. that's the whole job, she's a specialist. 👑

If --show-choices is used, it will just output a list of available choices to STDERR and exit. And no, you cannot use STDOUT here — this program loads debconf, and debconf captures STDOUT. so STDERR it is, no cap. 😭

If --set-default is used, the program will try to get a single regexp match from the available choices, failing if it doesn't. The way it works: it'll try a case dependent match first, and then a case independent one. so basically it checks the picky version before it stops caring about capitalization. 💅

If --set-default is not used, this program will make debconf always ask the shared question about the default wordlist to be used in your system, according to the installed ones. like, it keeps the conversation going forever until you answer, bestie. 🫶

In both cases, it will do the appropriate settings if needed. so like, either way she's handling business. ✨

lowkey important: it calls update-default-wordlist internally. so that's happening under the hood whether you asked for it or not. 🧚

🌈 SEE ALSO 🌈

The dictionaries-common policy document

go read it, it's the lore. iykyk 📚

💖 AUTHORS 💖

Rafael Laboissiere, Agustin Martin

shoutout to the icons who wrote this. 👑

okay so that's the whole page, and just so you know where this came from: this is version 1.31.4, dated 2026-3-22, from the SELECT-DEFAULT-WORDLIST(8) manual. slay, bye bestie 💜✨🎀

📦 where this page comes from