Question 2. What can go wrong with HashMap if all keys have the same hashCode? - Searching by key will not return the correct object - Searching by key will slow down - Searching by key will not return the object

If all keys in a HashMap have the same hashCode(), then they will all fall into the same bucket. This leads to the following consequences:

• Search by key will slow down, as instead of quick access via hash, all elements in one chain (or tree, if many) will need to be traversed.
• Search by key will still return the correct object if the key exists, because key comparison is done via equals().

Therefore, the correct answer is: Search by key will slow down.

Example:

Map<Key, Value> map = new HashMap<>();
// All keys have the same hashCode
// During search, all elements in one bucket will be traversed