What is method overriding and how does the @Override annotation assist?

What is method overriding and how does the @Override annotation assist?

• A. It allows a subclass to provide a new implementation for a base method; @Override confirms the override and helps catch errors.
• B. It creates a new method in the base class that hides the subclass method.
• C. It allows overloading methods with the same name but different parameters.
• D. It marks a method as not inheritable.

Answer: (A)

Method overriding is when a subclass provides its own version of a method that was defined in a superclass. Because of this, when you call that method on an object, the most specific version runs, allowing the subclass to customize behavior while using a common interface. The @Override annotation signals that intent to override a method from a superclass. If there’s no matching method to override (for example, a misspelled name or different parameters), the compiler flags an error, helping catch mistakes early. It also serves as clear documentation for readers that this method is meant to replace the superclass version. Key rules to note: the overriding method must have a compatible signature and can have the same or broader accessibility, and it can throw only the same or narrower checked exceptions. You can’t override final methods. Static methods aren’t actually overridden—they are hidden, so using @Override on a static method would be an error. If you need to access the base implementation, you can still call it with super.