What does the clear property do in CSS?

The clear property in CSS is specifically used to control the behavior of elements that are adjacent to floated elements. When an element is floated, it is taken out of the normal document flow, allowing other content to flow around it. However, there are instances when you may want to start a new element on a new line, preventing it from aligning next to the floated items. This is where the clear property comes into play.

Applying the clear property to an element effectively tells the browser to ignore any floating elements on the specified side (left, right, or both) when positioning the element. This prevents the designated element from appearing alongside floated elements, ensuring that it starts below them instead. As a result, this provides a way to manage the layout and ensure that content is displayed in a structured manner.

In contrast, the other options describe different CSS properties or functionalities but do not accurately represent the role of the clear property. For example, rearranging layouts is typically managed by properties like float or flexbox, opacity adjustments involve the opacity property, and margins are controlled using margin properties.