Overloading and overriding are two essential concepts in object-oriented programming, particularly in Java. Method overloading allows multiple methods within the same class to have the same name but different parameters, enhancing code readability and reusability. For instance, a class can have multiple methods named “calculateArea,” each designed to handle different shapes based on the parameters provided. On the other hand, method overriding occurs when a subclass provides a specific implementation of a method that is already defined in its superclass, maintaining the same method signature. This allows for dynamic method resolution, enabling polymorphism in Java.