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How does prototypal inheritance work in JavaScript?

Asked on Jul 24, 2025

Answer

Prototypal inheritance in JavaScript allows objects to inherit properties and methods from other objects. This is achieved through the prototype chain, where objects have a "prototype" property that points to another object, enabling shared functionality.

// Create a prototype object
        const animal = {
            speak() {
                console.log("Animal sound");
            }
        };

        // Create a new object that inherits from animal
        const dog = Object.create(animal);

        // Add a new method to the dog object
        dog.bark = function() {
            console.log("Woof!");
        };

        // Test the inheritance
        dog.speak(); // Inherited method
        dog.bark();  // Own method

Additional Comment:

The "animal" object serves as a prototype with a "speak" method.
The "dog" object is created using "Object.create(animal)", inheriting from "animal".
"dog" has its own method "bark" and also inherits "speak" from "animal".
This demonstrates how objects can share functionality through their prototype.

✅ Answered with JavaScript best practices.

Ask any question about JavaScript here... and get an instant response.

How does prototypal inheritance work in JavaScript?

Asked on Jul 24, 2025

Answer

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