Question

What is the oxidation state of gold?

Answer 1

Gold metal uncomined with another element would have an oxidation state of 0.

Explanation:

The oxidation state of an uncombined element is 0. This is also the case with the diatomic elements like `"O"_2"` and `"Cl"_2"`, and even `"S"_8"`. (This is not an exhaustive list.)