What is a key characteristic of pie charts?

A key characteristic of pie charts is that they display data as part of a whole. This visual representation is particularly effective for illustrating the relative proportions or percentages of different categories in relation to the total. In a pie chart, the circle represents 100% of the data, and each slice of the pie demonstrates the contribution of each category to the entire dataset. This makes it easy for viewers to understand how each component relates to the overall context, enabling a clear and intuitive interpretation of the data distribution.

The other choices do not align with the core functionality of a pie chart. Pie charts do not display data in a linear format, focus only on individual data points, or effectively compare multiple data sets; instead, they are designed specifically to show part-to-whole relationships within a single dataset.