Overload with different return type in Java?

Question

Why is it not possible to overload a function just by changing the return type? Will that change in a future version of Java?

By the way, just for reference, is this possible in C++?

Answer

You can’t do it in Java, and you can’t do it in C++. The rationale is that the return value alone is not sufficient for the compiler to figure out which function to call:

public int foo() {...}
public float foo() {..}

...
foo(); // which one?

Accepted Answer

You can&#8217;t do it in Java, and you can&#8217;t do it in C++. The rationale is that the return value alone is not sufficient for the compiler to figure out which function to call:public int foo() {...}public float foo() {..}...foo(); // which one?

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Answer