In terms of class methods, what does it mean to override a method?

Overriding a method refers to the process of replacing a method in a base (or parent) class with a new implementation in a derived (or child) class. When a derived class has its own version of a method that exists in its parent class, it essentially provides a specific behavior that is tailored for the derived class, rather than using the implementation of the method defined in the parent class. This allows for polymorphism, where the derived class can be treated as the parent class, but the overridden method of the derived class will be called, providing the expected behavior specific to the derived class.

This concept is fundamental in object-oriented programming, as it allows developers to create more specialized and flexible code by extending and modifying the behavior of existing classes while maintaining a consistent interface.