Written by the Fiveable Content Team โข Last updated September 2025
Verified for the 2026 exam
Verified for the 2026 examโขWritten by the Fiveable Content Team โข Last updated September 2025
Definition
The new keyword is used in Java to create an instance (object) of a class. It allocates memory for the object and initializes its attributes using the constructor method.
An instance variable is a variable declared within a class but outside any method. Each instance/object of that class has its own copy of these variables.
A reference variable holds the memory address/reference of an object rather than the actual object itself. It allows us to access and manipulate objects indirectly.