Dictionary overrides
Dictionary overrides provide the ability to define a field on an extended table differently from the field on the parent table.
For example, for a field on the Task [task] table, a dictionary override can change the default value on the Incident [incident] table without affecting the default value on Task [task] or on Change [change].
Administrators can override these aspects of a field:
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Reference qualifiers
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Dictionary attributes
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Default values
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Calculations
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Field dependencies
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Default column display values
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Mandatory and read-only status
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Define a dictionary override
Use a dictionary override to allow a field in a child table to have a different value or behavior than the same field in a parent table. For example, a dictionary override changes the default value of the priority field from 4 in the parent table to 5 in the Incident table.
Parent Topic:Managing tables and indexes
--- title: Dictionary overrides description: Dictionary overrides provide the ability to define a field on an extended table differently from the field on the parent table. locale: en-US canonical_url: https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/australia/platform-administration/table-administration-and-data-management/c\_DictionaryOverrides.html release: australia product: Table Administration and Data Management classification: table-administration-and-data-management topic_type: concept last_updated: "2026-09-10" reading_time_minutes: 1 breadcrumb: [Managing tables and indexes, Table admin, Tables and data, Configure core features, Administer the ServiceNow AI Platform] --- # Dictionary overrides Dictionary overrides provide the ability to define a field on an extended table differently from the field on the parent table. For example, for a field on the Task \[task\] table, a dictionary override can change the default value on the Incident \[incident\] table without affecting the default value on Task \[task\] or on Change \[change\]. Administrators can override these aspects of a field: - Reference qualifiers - Dictionary attributes - Default values - Calculations - Field dependencies - Default column display values - Mandatory and read-only status - **[Define a dictionary override](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/platform-administration/table-administration-and-data-management/t_DefineADictionaryOverride.md)** Use a dictionary override to allow a field in a child table to have a different value or behavior than the same field in a parent table. For example, a dictionary override changes the default value of the priority field from 4 in the parent table to 5 in the Incident table. **Parent Topic:**[Managing tables and indexes](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/platform-administration/table-administration-and-data-management/using-table-administration.md)
| title | Dictionary overrides |
| description | Dictionary overrides provide the ability to define a field on an extended table differently from the field on the parent table. |
| locale | en-US |
| canonical_url | https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/australia/platform-administration/table-administration-and-data-management/c\_DictionaryOverrides.html |
| release | australia |
| product | Table Administration and Data Management |
| classification | table-administration-and-data-management |
| topic_type | concept |
| last_updated | 2026-09-10 |
| reading_time_minutes | 1 |
| breadcrumb | Managing tables and indexesTable adminTables and dataConfigure core featuresAdminister the ServiceNow AI Platform |