Polymorphism

/ˌpɒliˈmɔːrfɪzəm/ noun

The ability of different objects or functions to respond to the same interface or method call in their own specific way. It allows a single interface to represent different underlying forms or data types.

From Greek 'poly' (many) and 'morphe' (form), literally meaning 'many forms.' The term was borrowed from biology in the 1960s when computer scientists needed to describe how the same operation could work differently on different data types.

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