Which of the following describes the LEFT OUTER JOIN?

The LEFT OUTER JOIN is a type of join operation in SQL that retrieves all records from the left table, along with the matched records from the right table. If there is no match found in the right table, the result will still include the records from the left table, but with NULL values in the columns corresponding to the right table.

This characteristic is essential because it allows developers to see all the entries in the left table, even when some of those entries do not have corresponding entries in the right table. This is particularly useful for maintaining context in datasets where not all entities are related. By ensuring that every entry from the left table appears in the result set, the LEFT OUTER JOIN can be instrumental in reporting and data analysis scenarios where the absence of related data is just as important to show as their presence.

The other options do not accurately represent the behavior of a LEFT OUTER JOIN. For instance, returning only rows from the right table contradicts the purpose of this join type, as it focuses on the left table. The assertion that it combines data from both tables without conditions misrepresents the purpose of joins, which are fundamentally based on defined relationships between tables. Lastly, returning unmatched records only fails to capture the complete intent of a