Optical properties of a series of Gd 2 O 3 doped sodium zinc tellurite [xGd 2 O 3 -(0.8-x) TeO 2 -0.1Na 2 O-0.1ZnO] glasses prepared by conventional melt quenching method have been studied. UV-Vis spectrophotometer was used in the integrating sphere mode at room temperature to study the effect of Gd 2 O 3 doping on the optical band gap, refractive index, dielectric constant and susceptibility within the wavelength range from 230-800 nm. Density is measured using Archimedes principle for the calculation of molar volume, molar refraction, polarizability and metallization criterion of the glasses.