C# Constructors cannot be Inherited. Why

Question

Hi C# constructors cannot be inherited. Why ?

Vulpes · Answer

As to why constructors are not inherited, this was a design choice in .NET and C#. I doubt whether the designers had to spend much time thinking about it as constructors are not inherited in Java and C++ either. If they were inherited, then developers would probably spend a lot of time 'hiding' base constructors with the same signature because they didn't do exactly what was wanted in the derived class. However, they'd still have to call the base constructor explicitly to initialize private fields of the base class which, whilst inherited, are not accessible from a derived class. It seems to me that the present design where constructors are not inherited but call the base class constructor implicitly, if it's parameterless, or explicitly otherwise, is much cleaner. The derived class constructor can then concentrate on initializing its own state.

Satyapriya Nayak · Answer

Hi Arun, Constructors are not inherited. In other words, just because a base class has a constructor taking a certain list of parameters doesn't mean that a derived class has a constructor taking that list of parameters. (It can, by providing one itself, but it doesn't inherit it from the base class.) To demonstrate this, here's an example which doesn't compile: public class MyBaseClass { public MyBaseClass ( int x) { } } public class MyDerivedClass : MyBaseClass { // This constructor itself is okay - it invokes an // appropriate base class constructor public MyDerivedClass () : base (5) { } public static void Main() { new MyDerivedClass (10); } } Here, we try to invoke a constructor for MyDerivedClass which takes an int parameter. There isn't one, however, as constructors aren't inherited. The MyBaseClass constructor which takes an int parameter can be invoked by a constructor in MyDerivedClass (as is shown by the parameterless MyDerivedClass constructor) but isn't actually inherited. Removing the "10" from the above code would make it compile and run with no problems - the parameterless MyDerivedClass constructor would be invoked, and that would in turn invoke the MyBaseClass constructor taking an int parameter, with 5 as that parameter value. Please refer the below link http://www.yoda.arachsys.com/csharp/constructors.html Thanks