How does an array handle primitive values compared to an ArrayList?

Arrays and ArrayLists are both data structures in Java, but they handle primitive values differently. An array can be declared to hold primitive data types directly, meaning that if you create an int array, it will store integers directly in the memory allocated for that array. For example, an int array can hold integers like so: int[] numbers = {1, 2, 3};.

On the other hand, an ArrayList can only store objects; it cannot directly hold primitive types such as int or char. However, Java provides autoboxing, which allows primitive types to be converted into their corresponding wrapper classes (like Integer for int) when added to an ArrayList. Therefore, if you add a primitive int to an ArrayList, it actually gets converted to an Integer object.

This fundamental difference — that arrays can directly hold primitive values while ArrayLists require them to be wrapped in an object — makes the statement that arrays can hold primitives directly, while ArrayLists cannot, accurate and the correct answer to the question.