Which of the following best describes a relational database?

A relational database is best described as a structure that combines multiple tables, which are linked together through key fields, also known as primary and foreign keys. This design allows for efficient organization and retrieval of data across different tables, making it possible to perform complex queries that can join data from multiple sources within the database.

For instance, in a relational database, you might have one table that stores customer information and another that stores orders. The tables can be linked through a common key, such as the customer ID, enabling queries that can retrieve all orders made by a specific customer. The flexibility and relational capabilities of this architecture are essential for handling large amounts of structured data and performing sophisticated data analysis.

The other options do not accurately represent the concept of a relational database. A single table without links does not leverage the relational model's advantages (which is what the second choice suggests). The notion that it does not support complex queries is incorrect, as relational databases are designed specifically to enable such operations (as mentioned in the third choice). Lastly, the claim that a relational database only stores text data is misleading, since relational databases can store various data types, including integers, dates, and binary data, not just text (reflecting the fourth choice).