Java OOP interview questions

what is the difference between String and StringBuilder?

String StringBuilder
1.String objects are immutable 1.StringBuilder objects are
mutable
2.new strings are created if we try to 2.new strings will not be created when
modify strings. hence memory wastage we modify strings. Hence no memory
will be more. wastage.

what is the difference between stringbuilder and stringbuffer?

StringBuilder StringBuffer
string builder objects are string buffer objects are
not synchronized and not thread synchronized and thread safe.
safe.
what is a class
1. class is a virtual entity.
2. class acts as blueprint for objects.
3. class is used for storing related variables & methods
eg:
public class Student
{
public int sno = 1;
public String sname = “ramesh”;
public String subject = “java”;
}
what is an object
1. object is a real world entity.
2. we use new keyword for creating object
eg: Student s1 = new Student();
what is constructor
1. by using constructor we can initialize objects.
2. constructor name should be same as class name
3. constructor should not have return type

eg : public class Bank

{
public String name;
public long acno;

public Bank(String name, long acno)

{
this.name = name;
this.acno = acno;
}
}
what is encapsulation?
binding logically related data and functions in a common
related place, is known as encapsulation.
public class Doctor
{
public string name;
public int exp;
public Doctor(string name, int exp)
{
this.name=name; this.exp= exp;
}
public string suggestMedicine(String disease)
{
//return medicine name based on disease.
}
}
In the above example, we are storing all doctor related data and doctor
related methods in one class. So we can say doctor class is following
encapsulation.
what is abstraction?
hiding implementation details and exposing the
required details to the users, is called as abstraction

eg :

mobile phone is an example for abstraction.

because we don’t know the internal working mechanism of
mobile phone.

what is default constructor?

if programmer doesn’t supply any constructor for a class,
then java compiler supplies a default constructor for that class
what is inheritance?

1. inheritance allows us to access parent class variables

and functions, in child class.
2. Inheritance reduces code duplication

eg:

public class A
{
}
public class B extends A
{
}
what is polymorphism?
when an entity is appearing with the same name in different
forms, then that entity is said to exhibit polymorphism.

java supports 2 types of polymorphisms.

1. compile time polymorphism / static polymorphism
2. runtime polymorphism / dynamic polymorphism

method overloading is example for compile time

polymorphism
method overriding is example for runtime polymorphism
what is method overloading?
when 2 or more methods having same method name
and different parameters in a given class,
then we can say the method is overloaded.

eg: public class C

{
public void m1(int x)
{
System.out.println(“hi”);
}
public void m1(int x, int y)
{
System.out.println(“hello”);
}
}
what is method overriding ?
1.overriding is used for changing the behavior of parent
class method in the child class.
2.method overriding requires same access specifier,
same return type, same method name and same
parameter in base class and derived class.

public class D {
public void m2() {
s.o.pln(“this is parent class m2 function”);
}
}
public class E extends D {
public void m2() {
s.o.pln(“this is child class m2 function”);
}
}
what is the use of this keyword?
this keyword is used to refer current instance
or current object.
eg: public class Doctor
{
public string name;
public int exp;

public Doctor(String name, int exp)

{
this.name=name;
this.exp= exp;
}

}
what is super keyword?
by using super keyword we can access parent
class members from child class.
public class F
{
public int x = 10;
}
public class G extends F
{
public int x = 20;
public void m3()
{
System.out.println(this.x);
System.out.println(super.x);
}
}
what is the difference between
instance variables and static variables?
Instance variable Static variable

Instance variables are object static variables are class specific.

specific.
Instance variables must be static variables can be accessed by
accessed by using object name using class name

public class H
{ H h1 = new H();
public int x = 10; System.out.println( h1.x );
public static int y = 20; System.out.println( H.y );
}
what is the difference between
instance methods and static methods?
Instance method (non static method) Static method

1. Instance methods must be called 1. Static methods can be called by

by using object name using class name

1. we can use this and super 1. we can’t use this or super

keywords in instance methods. keyword in static methods.

public class J J j1 = new J();

{
public void m4() { j1.m4();
System.out.println (“hi”) ;
} J.m5();
public static void m5() {
System.out.println(“hello”);
}
}
what is an abstract method
a method without body, is called as abstract method

eg : public abstract void m6();

what is an abstract class?

1. abstract class is a class which contains zero or more
abstract methods.
2. we can’t create object for abstract class.
public abstract class K
{
public abstract void m7();
}
what is an interface?
1. interface can contain only final variables and methods
without bodies.
2. we can’t create object for interface.
3. by default all methods of interface are abstract
methods.
public interface I public class L implements I
{
{ public void m8()
public final int x = 10; {
public void m8(); System.out.println(“hi”);
}
} }
what is the difference between abstract
class and interface ?
abstract class Interface

1. abstract class can contain 1. Interfaces can only contain

abstract methods, and concrete abstract methods.
methods (i.e methods with bodies).

2. abstract class members can be 2. interface members should be only

private / protected / default / public.
public
3. for using abstract class we need to 3. for using interface we need to
use extends keyword use implements keyword
what is access specifier?
java supports 4 types of access specifiers.
public, private, protected, and default.
1. public members are accessible from anywhere
in the application.
2. private members are accessible only within the
declared class
3. protected members are accessible in the
declared class, derived class and also any
where within the same package
4. default members are accessible in the declared
class and also anywhere within the same package
what is an exception?
Exception is a run time error which terminates the
program abruptly.

how do you handle exceptions?

exception handling is done by using try-catch blocks

try
{
// code which may give error
}
catch( exception ex )
{
// error storing code
}
can we have multiple catch blocks for a try?
1. yes, a try block can be followed by multiple catch
blocks.
2. exceptions of child class should be handled first,
then parent class exceptions should be handled.
what is the difference between throw and throws?

throw throws

throw is used to re-throw if we are not catching an

the exception to the exception in current method,
previous function in call then we use throws keyword to
pass exception to method caller
stack, after catching the
exception
what are the types of exceptions in java?
java supports 2 types of exceptions
1. checked exceptions

2. unchecked exceptions.

what is the difference between checked exceptions and

unchecked exceptions?

checked exceptions unchecked exceptions

1.it is mandatory to handle 1.it is not mandatory to handle

checked exceptions, else compiler unchecked exceptions. compiler
will throw error. will not throw error.
2.Checked exceptions inherits 2.Un checked exceptions inherits
from Exception class. from Error class or
eg : IOException, RunTimeException class.
FileNotFoundException eg : ArithmeticException
what is finally block?
1. finally block code will be executed in all the scenarios,
no matter whether exception occur or does not occur.
2. finally block is used to clean important systems
resources, like closing files, closing database
connections.
one try block can have how many finally blocks?
one try block can have maximum one finally block.
Is it possible to have a try block without catch block?
yes we can have try with finally block, without catch
blocks.
what is the parent class for all exceptions?
Throwable class is the parent most class for all exceptions
in java.
write one example for exception handling?
try
{
int[] arr = {10,20,30};
System.out.println(arr[3]);
}
catch(ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException ex)
{
System.out.println(“trying to access invalid
index”);
}
what is collection [or] collection framework?
collection framework is set of predefined
interfaces and classes, used to store and process
the data efficiently.

What are the types of collections in java?

java supports 3 types of collections
1. sets

2. lists

3. maps
What is map?
1. map is used to store pairs of elements.
2. Keys should be unique, and values can be
duplicate, in map.
3. there are 3 types of maps.

HashMap, TreeMap, LinkedHashMap

eg:
HashMap<String, String> m =
new HashMap<String, Sting> ();

m.put( “[email protected]”, “abcd”);

m.put( “[email protected]”, “xyz”);
System.out.println(m);
What is list?
1. list is an ordered collection of elements.

2. we can access list elements with index.

3. list allows duplicate elements.

4. there are 2 types of lists.

ArrayList, and LinkedList.

eg:
ArrayList<Integer> x = new ArrayList<Integer> ();
x.add(10);
x.add(20);
System.out.println(x);
What is the difference between ArrayList and
LinkedList?
Array List LinkedList

In array list, elements will be stored in In LinkedList, elements will be stored in

the sequential order. random order.
Arraylist is faster compared to LinkedList is slow
LinkedList

What is the difference between ArrayList and Array?

Array List Array

ArrayList is part of collection Array is not part of collection

framework framework
Array list is dynamically growable Array is fixed sized entity
What is set?
1. set does not allow duplicate elements.
2. set stores elements in random order.
3. there are 3 types of sets.
HashSet, TreeSet, LinkedHashSet

eg:
HashSet<String> h = new HashSet<String> ();
m.add( “java”);
m.add( “j2ee”);
System.out.println(h);
What is the difference between HashMap and
TreeMap?
HashMap TreeMap

HashMap internally uses hashing TreeMap internally uses binary trees to

algorithm to store elements. store elements.
HashMap stores elements in random TreeMap stores elements in key sorted
order. order.

What is the difference between HashSet and TreeSet?

HashSet TreeSet

HashSet internally uses hashing TreeSet internally uses binary trees to

algorithm to store elements. store elements.
HashSet stores elements in random TreeSet stores elements in sorted
order. order.
What is the difference between List and Set
List Set

List stores elements in insertion order Set stores elements in random order
(first come first store order)
List allows duplicate elements. Sets doesn’t allow duplicate elements.

Lists are slow compared to sets. Sets are faster than lists.

What is the difference between Collections and generics?

Collections Generics

Collections are not safe to use. Generics are more safe.

While using collections we don’t have While using generics we need to

to specify the data type of the specify the date type of elements.
elements.
what is thread?
thread is an independent path of execution.
threads are used for multitasking in our projects.
how will you create a thread in java?
there are 2 ways to create threads in java.
1. by extending Thread class.
2. by implementing Runnable interface.
public class M extends Thread public class N implements Runnable
{ {
public void run() public void run()
{ {
S.o.pln(“thread A”); S.o.pln(“thread N”);
} }
} }

M m1 = new M(); N n1 = new N();

m1.start(); Thread t = new Thread(n1);
t.start();
what happens if we call run() in place of start()?
if we call run() directly, then it will bypass the thread
creation. (which means JVM will not create a thread)
what is the difference between Thread class and
Runnable interface?
Thread Runnable
Thread is predefined class of JDK, Runnable is a predefined interface of
which internally implements Runnable JDK, which contains run() method.
interface

what is the use of sleep() method?

sleep() method is used to halt a thread execution, for
few milliseconds.
what is the best way to create a thread, by extending
Thread class or by implementing Runnable interface?

creating a thread by implementing Runnable interface is

better, because
1. if we create a thread by extending Thread class, then in
future if we want to inherit any other class into our class
then it is not possible, as java doesn’t support multiple
inheritance.
2. if we create a thread by implementing Runnable
interface, then in future if we want to inherit any other
class into our class then it is possible to inherit.
what is join() method?
join() method allows one thread to wait until other
thread completes its execution.

what is notify() method?

notify() is used to wake up a thread, which is in
waiting state.

what is a daemon thread?

1. daemon thread is a thread which will not die, even
after program execution stops.
2. garbage collector is an example of daemon thread.
what is final method?
final method is a method which we can’t override in child
class
what is final class?
we can’t inherit or extend final class
what is package?
package is a logical container used for grouping
related classes and interfaces.
What is garbage collector?
Garbage collector cleans all the un-referenced objects
from the heap memory.
When to use abstract method?
If you know only method name, but you don’t know
the logic, then use abstract method.
When to use abstract class?
If a class contains some concrete methods and
some abstract methods, then declare the class as
an abstract class.
Is it possible to make a class as abstract class, if it
contains 0 abstract methods?
yes
How do you use an abstract class?
By inheriting abstract class into another class and
by overriding all abstract methods of parent class in
the child class.
how to use an interface?
by using implements keyword.
can we implement multiple interfaces into a class?
yes
can we inherit multiple classes into a class?
no
what is the parent most class for all classes in java?
Object class
can we override static method?
no
can we overload static method?
yes
explain public static void main()?
public means jvm can access this method from
anywhere
static keyword allows JVM to call this method
without creating object for this class
void means it won’t return any value
main is predefined keyword which marks this
method as entry point for the project.

explain System.out.println()?
System is a predefined class of java.
out is a static object present in System class.
println() is a method of out.