A linked list is a data structure used in computer science to store a collection of elements, called nodes. Each node contains two parts: the data itself and a reference (or link) to the next node in the sequence. This allows for efficient insertion and deletion of elements, as the nodes can be easily rearranged without needing to shift other elements, unlike in an array. There are different types of linked lists, such as singly linked lists, where each node points to the next one, and doubly linked lists, where nodes have links to both the next and previous nodes. This flexibility makes linked lists useful for various applications, including implementing stacks, queues, and other complex data structures.