The protected modifier on a Field declaration within a public class means that the field ____________.

Question

Options

• ACannot be modified
• BCan be read but not written from outside the class
• CCan be read and written from this class and its subclasses only within the same package
• DCan be read and written from this class and its subclasses defined in any package

• B
  10% (3)
• C
  7% (2)
• D
  83% (25)

Explanation

protected grants access to the declaring class itself and to all subclasses regardless of which package they live in, plus any class within the same package - making D the accurate description. This is the key distinction Java draws between protected (cross-package via inheritance) and package-private (same-package only, no modifier).

Why the distractors are wrong:

• A is describing final, which prevents reassignment, not protected.
• B describes a read-only pattern (like a private field with only a getter) - protected places no asymmetric restriction on reads vs. writes.
• C is the most tempting trap: it correctly notes subclass access but wrongly confines subclasses to the same package. That would actually describe package-private (no modifier) behavior, not protected.

Memory tip: Think of protected as "protecting the family tree." Any subclass - wherever it lives in the package hierarchy - inherits the right to use the field. If you have to stay in the same package, you don't need protected at all; just omit the modifier.

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