A procedure is described for the preparation of extensively purified beta-D-glucosidase (EC 3.2.1.21) from the cytosol fraction of rat kidney. The specific activity of the beta-glucosidase in the high speed supernatant (100 000 X g, 90 min) fraction of rat kidney homogenate is 700-fold greater than that in the same fraction from heart, skeletal muscle, lung, spleen, brain or liver. beta-Glucosidase activity co-chromatographs with beta-D-galactosidase, beta-D-fucosidase, alpha-L-arabinosidase and beta-D-xylosidase activities through the last four column steps of the purification and their specific activities are 0.26, 0.39, 0.028 and 0.017 relative to that of beta-glucosidase, respectively. The specific activity of the apparently homogeneous beta-glucosidase is 115 000 nmol of glucose released from 4-methylumbelliferyl-beta-D-glucopyranoside per mg protein per h. All five glycosidase activities possess similar pH dependency (pH optimum, 6--7) and heat lability, and co-migrate on polyacrylamide disc gels at pH 8.9 (RF, 0.67). beta-Glucosidase acitivity is inhibited competitively by glucono-(1 leads to 5)-lactone (KI, 0.61 mM) and non-competitively by a variety of sulfhydryl reagents including N-ethylmaleimide, p-chloromercuribenzoate, 5,5'-dithio-bis(2-nitrobenzoic acid), and iodoacetic acid. Although the enzyme will release glucose from p-nitrophenyl and 4-methylumbelliferyl derivatives of beta-D-glucose, it will not hydrolyze xylosyl-O-serine, beta-D-glucocerebroside, lactose, galactosylovalbumin or trehalose. The enzyme consists of a single polypeptide chain with a molecular weight of 50 000--58 000, has a sedimentation coefficient of 4.41 S and contains a relatively large number of acidic amino acids. A study of the distribution of beta-glucosidase activity in various regions of the dissected rat kidney indicates that the enzyme is probably contained in cells of the proximal convoluted tubule. The enzyme is also present in relatively large amounts in the villus cells, but not crypt cells, of the intestine. The physiological substrate and function of the enzyme are unknown.