What does "inheritance" mean in object-oriented programming?

Inheritance in object-oriented programming refers to the capability of one class, often called a child or derived class, to inherit attributes and behaviors (properties and methods) from another class, known as the parent or base class. This mechanism enables the derived class to gain access to the properties and methods defined in the base class, facilitating code reuse and the creation of hierarchical relationships between classes.

For instance, if you have a base class called "Animal" with properties like "species" and methods like "makeSound," you could define a derived class called "Dog," which would automatically inherit those properties and methods. This allows you to extend or override certain aspects of the parent class while still retaining its foundational elements, leading to more organized and maintainable code.

The concept of inheritance is fundamental in creating a clear structure in your code, allowing for easier updates and modification when classes share common functionalities. In contrast, the other options do not accurately define inheritance: referencing another class refers more to composition, sharing methods does not encompass the comprehensive nature of inheritance, and inheriting from multiple classes relates to a more specific concept called multiple inheritance, which is a separate topic within object-oriented programming.