words is not initialized correctly. You are initializing a LOCAL variable words which is hiding the CLASS variable words.

Do this in your constructor:

public EnglishDictionary(String firstLetter, int wordLength) {
  //ArrayList<String> words = new ArrayList<String>();  // Creates a local variable called 'words'; class member does NOT get initialized.
  words = new ArrayList<String>(); // THIS initializes the class variable.
  processDict(firstLetter, wordLength);

}

Answer from Peter Gluck on Stack Overflow
🌐
Wikibooks
en.wikibooks.org › wiki › Java_Programming › Preventing_NullPointerException
Preventing NullPointerException - Wikibooks, open books for an open world
In the code section 6.14 we want to create the Person inside the if-else, but we also want to return the object reference to the caller, so we need to create the object reference outside of the if-else, because of the scoping rule in Java. Incorrect error-handling and poor contract design can be a pitfall with any programming language. This is also true for Java. Now we will describe how to prevent NullPointerException.
Top answer
1 of 2
4227

There are two overarching types of variables in Java:

  1. Primitives: variables that contain data. If you want to manipulate the data in a primitive variable you can manipulate that variable directly. By convention primitive types start with a lowercase letter. For example variables of type int or char are primitives.

  2. References: variables that contain the memory address of an Object i.e. variables that refer to an Object. If you want to manipulate the Object that a reference variable refers to you must dereference it. Dereferencing usually entails using . to access a method or field, or using [ to index an array. By convention reference types are usually denoted with a type that starts in uppercase. For example variables of type Object are references.

Consider the following code where you declare a variable of primitive type int and don't initialize it:

int x;
int y = x + x;

These two lines will crash the program because no value is specified for x and we are trying to use x's value to specify y. All primitives have to be initialized to a usable value before they are manipulated.

Now here is where things get interesting. Reference variables can be set to null which means "I am referencing nothing". You can get a null value in a reference variable if you explicitly set it that way, or a reference variable is uninitialized and the compiler does not catch it (Java will automatically set the variable to null).

If a reference variable is set to null either explicitly by you or through Java automatically, and you attempt to dereference it you get a NullPointerException.

The NullPointerException (NPE) typically occurs when you declare a variable but did not create an object and assign it to the variable before trying to use the contents of the variable. So you have a reference to something that does not actually exist.

Take the following code:

Integer num;
num = new Integer(10);

The first line declares a variable named num, but it does not actually contain a reference value yet. Since you have not yet said what to point to, Java sets it to null.

In the second line, the new keyword is used to instantiate (or create) an object of type Integer, and the reference variable num is assigned to that Integer object.

If you attempt to dereference num before creating the object you get a NullPointerException. In the most trivial cases, the compiler will catch the problem and let you know that "num may not have been initialized," but sometimes you may write code that does not directly create the object.

For instance, you may have a method as follows:

public void doSomething(SomeObject obj) {
   // Do something to obj, assumes obj is not null
   obj.myMethod();
}

In which case, you are not creating the object obj, but rather assuming that it was created before the doSomething() method was called. Note, it is possible to call the method like this:

doSomething(null);

In which case, obj is null, and the statement obj.myMethod() will throw a NullPointerException.

If the method is intended to do something to the passed-in object as the above method does, it is appropriate to throw the NullPointerException because it's a programmer error and the programmer will need that information for debugging purposes.

In addition to NullPointerExceptions thrown as a result of the method's logic, you can also check the method arguments for null values and throw NPEs explicitly by adding something like the following near the beginning of a method:

// Throws an NPE with a custom error message if obj is null
Objects.requireNonNull(obj, "obj must not be null");

Note that it's helpful to say in your error message clearly which object cannot be null. The advantage of validating this is that 1) you can return your own clearer error messages and 2) for the rest of the method you know that unless obj is reassigned, it is not null and can be dereferenced safely.

Alternatively, there may be cases where the purpose of the method is not solely to operate on the passed in object, and therefore a null parameter may be acceptable. In this case, you would need to check for a null parameter and behave differently. You should also explain this in the documentation. For example, doSomething() could be written as:

/**
  * @param obj An optional foo for ____. May be null, in which case
  *  the result will be ____.
  */
public void doSomething(SomeObject obj) {
    if(obj == null) {
       // Do something
    } else {
       // Do something else
    }
}

Finally, How to pinpoint the exception & cause using Stack Trace

What methods/tools can be used to determine the cause so that you stop the exception from causing the program to terminate prematurely?

Sonar with find bugs can detect NPE. Can sonar catch null pointer exceptions caused by JVM Dynamically

Now Java 14 has added a new language feature to show the root cause of NullPointerException. This language feature has been part of SAP commercial JVM since 2006.

In Java 14, the following is a sample NullPointerException Exception message:

in thread "main" java.lang.NullPointerException: Cannot invoke "java.util.List.size()" because "list" is null

List of situations that cause a NullPointerException to occur

Here are all the situations in which a NullPointerException occurs, that are directly* mentioned by the Java Language Specification:

  • Accessing (i.e. getting or setting) an instance field of a null reference. (static fields don't count!)
  • Calling an instance method of a null reference. (static methods don't count!)
  • throw null;
  • Accessing elements of a null array.
  • Synchronising on null - synchronized (someNullReference) { ... }
  • Any integer/floating point operator can throw a NullPointerException if one of its operands is a boxed null reference
  • An unboxing conversion throws a NullPointerException if the boxed value is null.
  • Calling super on a null reference throws a NullPointerException. If you are confused, this is talking about qualified superclass constructor invocations:
class Outer {
    class Inner {}
}
class ChildOfInner extends Outer.Inner {
    ChildOfInner(Outer o) { 
        o.super(); // if o is null, NPE gets thrown
    }
}
  • Using a for (element : iterable) loop to loop through a null collection/array.

  • switch (foo) { ... } (whether its an expression or statement) can throw a NullPointerException when foo is null.

  • foo.new SomeInnerClass() throws a NullPointerException when foo is null.

  • Method references of the form name1::name2 or primaryExpression::name throws a NullPointerException when evaluated when name1 or primaryExpression evaluates to null.

    a note from the JLS here says that, someInstance.someStaticMethod() doesn't throw an NPE, because someStaticMethod is static, but someInstance::someStaticMethod still throw an NPE!

* Note that the JLS probably also says a lot about NPEs indirectly.

2 of 2
972

NullPointerExceptions are exceptions that occur when you try to use a reference that points to no location in memory (null) as though it were referencing an object. Calling a method on a null reference or trying to access a field of a null reference will trigger a NullPointerException. These are the most common, but other ways are listed on the NullPointerException javadoc page.

Probably the quickest example code I could come up with to illustrate a NullPointerException would be:

public class Example {

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        Object obj = null;
        obj.hashCode();
    }

}

On the first line inside main, I'm explicitly setting the Object reference obj equal to null. This means I have a reference, but it isn't pointing to any object. After that, I try to treat the reference as though it points to an object by calling a method on it. This results in a NullPointerException because there is no code to execute in the location that the reference is pointing.

(This is a technicality, but I think it bears mentioning: A reference that points to null isn't the same as a C pointer that points to an invalid memory location. A null pointer is literally not pointing anywhere, which is subtly different than pointing to a location that happens to be invalid.)

🌐
Stack Overflow
stackoverflow.com › questions › 24025173 › null-pointer-exception-while-creating-an-class-object-to-be-used-in-adaptor-for
java - Null Pointer Exception while creating an class object to be used in adaptor for populating custom listview - Stack Overflow
public class ContactData { String contact_id; String first_name; String last_name; String email; Uri icon; public ContactData(String contact_id,String first_name,String last_name,String email){ this.contact_id=contact_id; this.first_name=first_name; this.last_name=last_name; this.email=email; this.icon= Uri.withAppendedPath(ContactsContract.Contacts.CONTENT_URI,contact_id); if (this.icon == null){ this.icon = Uri.parse("android.resource://com.project.iandwe/drawable/ic_contacts"); } } public String getContact_id() { return contact_id; } public void setContact_id(String contact_id) { this.conta
🌐
GitHub
github.com › joeferner › node-java › issues › 182
java.lang.NullPointerException when creating object · Issue #182 · joeferner/node-java
January 7, 2015 - java.lang.NullPointerException at com.tibco.tibjms.TibjmsxCFImpl._createConnection(TibjmsxCFImpl.java:2 56) at com.tibco.tibjms.TibjmsConnectionFactory.createConnection(TibjmsConne ctionFactory.java:58) at sun.reflect.NativeMethodAccessorImpl.invoke0(Native Method) at sun.reflect.NativeMethodAccessorImpl.invoke(NativeMethodAccessorImpl.
Author: joeferner
🌐
Stack Overflow
stackoverflow.com › questions › 49031133 › java-null-pointer-exception-though-an-object-has-been-created
Java null pointer exception. Though an object has been created - Stack Overflow
You have created an array, but you haven't initialized the single elements within the array. The array in your case contains only nulls. That's why you get the exception.
Find elsewhere
🌐
Net Informations
net-informations.com › java › cjava › null.htm
What is NullPointerException in Java
Since you did not say as yet what to point to Java sets it to null . That means its pointing at nothing. In the second line, the new keyword is used to instantiate (or create) an object of type String and the pointer variable str is assigned this object. You can now reference the object using the dereferencing operator .
🌐
Stack Overflow
stackoverflow.com › questions › 23305717 › im-getting-null-pointer-exception-in-my-object-array
java - Im getting null pointer exception in my object array - Stack Overflow
remove for (int i=0; i<seatList.length; i++){ seatList[i]= new Seat(i, null, null); } doesnt make sense ... Your main() method is accessing the static seatList field, which has not been populated (SeatList() has not been called yet). seatList should probably be made non-static, and accessed via a getter method, to enforce that the object is fully initialized before it's used.
🌐
Stack Overflow
stackoverflow.com › questions › 31109496 › null-pointer-exception-while-creating-instance-of-a-class
c++ - Null pointer exception while creating instance of a class - Stack Overflow
template <class Base> class CComObject : public Base { public: typedef Base _BaseClass; CComObject(_In_opt_ void* = NULL) throw() { _pAtlModule->Lock(); //_pAtlModule is NULL,and hence NULL pointer exception is thrown } ..............................
🌐
EDUCBA
educba.com › home › software development › software development tutorials › java tutorial › java nullpointerexception
Java NullPointerException | How NullPointerException Works in Java?
April 4, 2023 - It is a runtime exception that occurs when the object instantiation is not proper. The object is declared as having a null value in it. The null pointer exception simply signifies that it is trying to call an object with a reference that has ...
Address: Unit no. 202, Jay Antariksh Bldg, Makwana Road, Marol, Andheri (East),, 400059, Mumbai
🌐
Oracle
docs.oracle.com › javase › 8 › docs › api › java › lang › NullPointerException.html
NullPointerException (Java Platform SE 8 )
July 21, 2026 - NullPointerException objects may be constructed by the virtual machine as if suppression were disabled and/or the stack trace was not writable.
🌐
Oracle
docs.oracle.com › javase › 7 › docs › api › java › lang › NullPointerException.html
NullPointerException (Java Platform SE 7 )
NullPointerException objects may be constructed by the virtual machine as if suppression were disabled and/or the stack trace was not writable.
🌐
DigitalOcean
digitalocean.com › community › tutorials › java-lang-nullpointerexception
Java NullPointerException - Detect, Fix, and Best Practices | DigitalOcean
August 3, 2022 - Technical tutorials, Q&A, events — This is an inclusive place where developers can find or lend support and discover new ways to contribute to the community.