Types of polymorphism with real-life examples

Polymorphism comes under the four pillars of object-orientated programming. The word "poly" means many, and "morphism" refers to forms. Therefore, polymorphism is the phenomenon that refers to the ability of an object to have multiple forms, that is, to act differently under different conditions.

As in object-orientated programming, we consider objects as real-life entities and form classes accordingly. Similarly, let's understand polymorphism with a real-life example. Consider a person, who can have multiple characteristics at a time, the person can be a father, a son, and an employee at the same time. The same person acts differently in different scenarios, this shows polymorphism.

Now that we have a basic idea about polymorphism, let's dive deeper into the types of polymorphism.

Types of polymorphism

The beauty of polymorphism is that the code working with different classes does
not need to know which class its using since all classes are used the same way. A real-world
example of polymorphism is a button. Everyone knows how to use a button, but what a button operates depends on what it is connected to and the context in which it is used. However, the result does not affect how it is functions.

Let's have a look at the types of polymorphism in the diagram below:

There are generally 2 broad types of Polymorphism:

Static or compile-time polymorphism
Dynamic or run-time polymorphism

Note: Polymorphism can be implemented both within a single class (using compile-time polymorphism) and across multiple classes (using runtime polymorphism).

Let's understand these types of polymorphism.

Static polymorphism

Static polymorphism, also known as compile-time and ad-hoc polymorphism, is a type of polymorphism that is resolved during the compilation phase of the program. It is achieved through method overloading and operator overloading, where the appropriate method or operator is determined based on the number or types of arguments provided during the compilation.

Static polymorphism is achieved within a class when multiple functions have the same name of the functions but different signatures, that is:

Changing the number of parameters
Changing data types of the arguments
Changing the order of the parameters of the method

Method overloading

public class Person {
    private String name;
    private int age;
    // Constructor with name and age
    public Person(String name) {
        this.name = name;
    }
    public void displayInfo(String occupation) {
        System.out.println("Occupation: " + occupation);
    }
    // Method with different number of parameters
    public void displayInfo(int age, String city) {
        System.out.println("age: " + age);
        System.out.println("City: " + city);
    }
        // Method with different order of parameters
    public void displayInfo(String city,int age) {
        System.out.println("City: " + city);
        System.out.println("age: " + age);
}
public static void main(String[] args) {
        Person person1 = new Person("John");
        Person person2 = new Person("Anya ");
        // Display additional information (occupation)
        person1.displayInfo("Software Engineer");
        System.out.println();
        // Display additional information (address)
        person2.displayInfo(25, "New York");
        person2.displayInfo("New york",25);
    }}

Code explanation

The Person class has three versions of the displayInfo method, each demonstrating method overloading based on the number and types of parameters.

The method with one parameter
The method with two parameters
The method with different parameter order

During compilation, the Java compiler determines which version of the displayInfo method to call based on the number and types of arguments provided during method invocation. For example, when person1.displayInfo("Software Engineer") is called, the first version of the displayInfo method with a String parameter is invoked. When person2.displayInfo(25, "New York") and person2.displayInfo("New York",25) are called, the second and third versions of the displayInfo method with different parameter orders are invoked, respectively.

#include <iostream>
class Complex {
private:
    double real;
    double imag;
public:
    Complex(double real = 0.0, double imag = 0.0) : real(real), imag(imag) {}
    // Overload the + operator for complex number addition
    Complex operator+(const Complex& other) const {
        return Complex(real + other.real, imag + other.imag);
    }
    // Overload the - operator for complex number subtraction
    Complex operator-(const Complex& other) const {
        return Complex(real - other.real, imag - other.imag);
    }
    // Overload the * operator for complex number multiplication
    Complex operator*(const Complex& other) const {
        return Complex((real * other.real) - (imag * other.imag),
                       (real * other.imag) + (imag * other.real));
    }
    // Overload the << operator for custom output
    friend std::ostream& operator<<(std::ostream& os, const Complex& complex) {
        os << complex.real << " + " << complex.imag << "i";
        return os;  }};
int main() {
    Complex c1(3.0, 4.0);
    Complex c2(1.5, 2.5);
    Complex sum = c1 + c2;
    Complex difference = c1 - c2;
    Complex product = c1 * c2;
    std::cout << "c1: " << c1 << std::endl;
    std::cout << "c2: " << c2 << std::endl;
    std::cout << "Sum: " << sum << std::endl;
    std::cout << "Difference: " << difference << std::endl;
    std::cout << "Product: " << product << std::endl;
    return 0;
}

// Base class
class Shape {
    public void draw() {
        System.out.println("Drawing a shape");
    }
}
// Subclass Circle
class Circle extends Shape {
    @Override
    public void draw() {
        System.out.println("Drawing a circle");
    }
}
// Subclass Square
class Square extends Shape {
    @Override
    public void draw() {
        System.out.println("Drawing a square");
    }
}
public class main {
    public static void main(String[] args) {
        Shape shape1 = new Circle(); // Upcasting
        Shape shape2 = new Square(); // Upcasting
        Shape shape3 =new Shape();
        shape1.draw(); // Output: "Drawing a circle"
        shape2.draw(); // Output: "Drawing a square"
        shape3.draw();
    }}

Learn in-demand tech skills in half the time

PRODUCTS

Mock Interview

New

Courses

Skill Paths

Projects

Assessments

	Static Polymorphism	Dynamic Polymorphism
Binding Time	Compile-Time	Run-time
Mechanism	Achieved through method overloading.	Achieved through method overriding.
Class Relationship Class Relationship	Exists within a single class (overloaded methods).	Requires a superclass-subclass relationship (overridden methods).
Invocation	Early bining	Late binding
Performance	Slightly faster due to early binding.	Slightly slower due to late binding and dynamic resolution.

Types of polymorphism with real-life examples