Returns the value to which this map maps the specified key. Returns
null if the map contains no mapping for this key. A return
value of
null does not
necessarily indicate that the
map contains no mapping for the key; it's also possible that the map
explicitly maps the key to
null. The
containsKey
operation may be used to distinguish these two cases.
More formally, if this map contains a mapping from a key
k to a value v such that (key==null ? k==null :
key.equals(k)), then this method returns v; otherwise
it returns null. (There can be at most one such mapping.)
Returns:
the value to which this map maps the specified key, or
null if the map contains no mapping for this key.
Parameters:
- key - key whose associated value is to be returned.
Throws:
- NullPointerException - if key is null
- ClassCastException - if key is not String
- IllegalArgumentException - if key is empty String