# Python Polymorphism

> Learn how polymorphism works in Python: defining the same method, like eat(), on different classes so you can call it without knowing each object's type.

Author: [Flavio Copes](https://flaviocopes.com/about/) | Published: 2021-02-20 | Topics: [Python](https://flaviocopes.com/tags/python/) | Canonical: https://flaviocopes.com/python-polymorphism/

Polymorphism generalizes a functionality so it can work on different types. It's an important concept in object-oriented programming.

We can define the same method on different classes:

```python
class Dog:
    def eat():
        print('Eating dog food')

class Cat:
    def eat():
        print('Eating cat food')
```

Then we can generate objects and we can call the `eat()` method regardless of the class the object belongs to, and we'll get different results:

```python
animal1 = Dog()
animal2 = Cat()

animal1.eat()
animal2.eat()
```

We built a generalized interface and we now do not need to know that an animal is a Cat or a Dog.