This operator is used only for object reference variables. The operator checks whether the object is of a particular type (class type or interface type). instanceof operator is written as −
( Object reference variable ) instanceof (class/interface type)
If the object referred by the variable on the left side of the operator passes the IS-A check for the class/interface type on the right side, then the result will be true. Following is an example −
Example
public class Test {
public static void main(String args[]) {
String name = "James"; // following will return true since name is type of String
boolean result = name instanceof String;
System.out.println( result );
}
}Output
This will produce the following result −
true
This operator will still return true if the object being compared is the assignment compatible with the type on the right. Following is one more example −
Example
class Vehicle {}
public class Car extends Vehicle {
public static void main(String args[]) {
Vehicle a = new Car();
boolean result = a instanceof Car;
System.out.println( result );
}
}Output
This will produce the following result −
true