Explain the Python Inheritance

Inheritance is one of the main principles of Object-Oriented Programming (OOP).
It allows a class (called the child or subclass) to inherit attributes and methods from another class (called the parent or base class).

This helps you reuse code, extend functionality, and organize your program better.

Basic Example

# Parent Class
class Animal:
    def __init__(self, name):
        self.name = name

    def speak(self):
        return "Some generic sound"

# Child Class
class Dog(Animal):
    def speak(self):
        return "Woof!"

# Another Child Class
class Cat(Animal):
    def speak(self):
        return "Meow!"

# Using the classes
dog = Dog("Buddy")
cat = Cat("Kitty")

print(dog.name, "says:", dog.speak())  # Buddy says: Woof!
print(cat.name, "says:", cat.speak())  # Kitty says: Meow!

Explanation:

Animal is the parent class.
Dog and Cat are child classes that inherit from Animal.
They override the speak() method to provide their own behavior.

Syntax of Inheritance

class ChildClass(ParentClass):
    # child class body
    pass

If you don’t specify a parent, the class inherits from Python’s built-in object by default.

Types of Inheritance in Python

Single Inheritance
→ One child inherits from one parent.

class A:
    pass
class B(A):
    pass

Multiple Inheritance
→ One child inherits from multiple parents.

class A:
    pass
class B:
    pass
class C(A, B):
    pass

Multilevel Inheritance
→ A class inherits from a child class.

class A:
    pass
class B(A):
    pass
class C(B):
    pass

Hierarchical Inheritance
→ Multiple children inherit from the same parent.

class Parent:
    pass
class Child1(Parent):
    pass
class Child2(Parent):
    pass

Hybrid Inheritance
→ A combination of multiple inheritance types.

`super()` Function

You can use super() to call methods or constructors from the parent class.

class Animal:
    def __init__(self, name):
        self.name = name

class Dog(Animal):
    def __init__(self, name, breed):
        super().__init__(name)   # Call parent constructor
        self.breed = breed

dog = Dog("Rex", "Labrador")
print(dog.name, dog.breed)

Method Resolution Order (MRO)

In multiple inheritance, Python uses MRO (Method Resolution Order) to decide which parent class’s method to call first.

You can check it using:

print(ClassName.__mro__)

Advantages of Inheritance

Promotes code reuse
Makes maintenance easier
Enables extensibility (easy to add new features)
Supports polymorphism (same interface, different behavior)

When Not to Use Inheritance

When classes don’t share a logical relationship
When composition (having objects as members) is a better fit

Example:

# Instead of inheritance
class Engine:
    pass

class Car:
    def __init__(self):
        self.engine = Engine()  # Composition (has-a relationship)

interview

Explain the Python Inheritance

Manish Kumar

Can you answer this question?

1 Answers

Basic Example

Explanation:

Syntax of Inheritance

Types of Inheritance in Python

`super()` Function

Method Resolution Order (MRO)

Advantages of Inheritance

When Not to Use Inheritance

Liked By

interview

Explain the Python Inheritance

Manish Kumar

Can you answer this question?

1 Answers

Basic Example

Explanation:

Syntax of Inheritance

Types of Inheritance in Python

super() Function

Method Resolution Order (MRO)

Advantages of Inheritance

When Not to Use Inheritance

Liked By

`super()` Function