What do C++ inheritance and polymorphism refer to?

In C++, inheritance refers to the ability of one class to inherit properties and methods from another class, allowing the code of the parent class to be reused in the child class. This helps improve code reusability and scalability, reducing the amount of repetitive coding work.

Polymorphism refers to the ability of an object to exhibit different behaviors in different situations. In C++, polymorphism can be achieved using virtual functions and pointers or references to derived classes, allowing the actual type of an object to be determined at runtime and the correct method to be called. Polymorphism can unify interfaces, increase flexibility, and improve the maintainability and extensibility of code.