polymorphic
English
Etymology
poly- + -morphic
Pronunciation
- (US) IPA(key): /ˌpɑliˈmɔɹfɪk/
- Rhymes: -ɔː(r)fɪk
Adjective
polymorphic (not comparable)
- Relating to polymorphism (any sense), able to have several shapes or forms.
- 1859, Charles Darwin, On the Origin of Species
- I refer to those genera which have sometimes been called "protean" or "polymorphic," in which the species present an inordinate amount of variation; and hardly two naturalists can agree which forms to rank as species and which as varieties.
- 1897, Grant Allen, An African Millionaire
- Dr. Beddersley came -- a dapper little man, with pent-house eyebrows, and keen, small eyes, whom I suspected at sight of being Colonel Clay himself in another of his clever polymorphic embodiments.
- 1996, Rod Ellis, Data abstraction and program design
- Polymorphic redefinition in C++ is achieved by the use of virtual functions.
- 1859, Charles Darwin, On the Origin of Species
- (programming, of a function) Able to take multiple data types for a single parameter.
Synonyms
- (able to have several shapes or forms): multiform, protean; See also Thesaurus:multiform
Antonyms
- monomorphic
Derived terms
- polymorphically
Translations
relating to polymorphism
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