SQL is a programming language used to store, manipulate and retrieve data in relational database management systems (RDBMS). It uses data definition language (DDL) to define database schemas, data manipulation language (DML) to insert, update and delete data, and data query language (DQL) to retrieve data from databases. Common SQL commands include CREATE, ALTER, DROP, SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE, COMMIT and ROLLBACK. SQL functions and operators like GROUP BY, ORDER BY, DISTINCT, LIKE, AND and OR extend its data querying capabilities.