What does polymorphism mean in object-oriented programming?

Polymorphism in object-oriented programming refers to the ability for different classes to be treated as instances of the same class through a common interface. This concept allows methods to be defined in a general way and then implemented differently across various subclasses.

For example, if you have a base class called "Animal" with a method "makeSound()", different subclasses like "Dog" and "Cat" can have their specific implementations of that method. When you call "makeSound()" on an object of type "Animal", the actual method that gets invoked corresponds to the actual class of the object, whether it is a "Dog" or a "Cat". This enables flexibility and ensures that the code can work with objects of different classes while interacting with them uniformly.

This capability is crucial in enabling systems to be more adaptable, as it allows for the extension of functionalities without altering existing code. Generally, through polymorphism, methods can be defined in a way that they can operate on different data types or classes, enhancing code reusability and simplifying maintenance.

In contrast, the other choices do not accurately capture the essence of polymorphism. Changing object types refers more to type casting or interface implementation. The ability to create multiple constructors pertains to constructor overloading, which