Multiple linear regression models relationships between an outcome variable and multiple explanatory variables. It assumes a linear relationship between the variables and estimates coefficients that represent the effect of each explanatory variable on the outcome, holding other variables fixed. Ordinary least squares estimation minimizes the sum of squared residuals to estimate the coefficients, resulting in unbiased, best linear unbiased estimators under the assumptions of linearity, random sampling, no perfect collinearity, zero conditional mean of errors, and homoscedasticity. The estimated coefficients can be interpreted as the partial effect of changes in each explanatory variable on the outcome.