WSDL (Web Services Description Language) is an XML format for describing web services and how they communicate. It defines three key aspects of a web service: what operations it performs, how messages are formatted and transmitted, and where the service can be accessed. A WSDL document uses elements like types, message, portType, binding, and service to describe these aspects. Tools exist to generate code from a WSDL that allows programs to access the defined web service.