Abstract A poly-γ-ethyl-l-glutamate solution with a cholesteric color exhibits a circular dichroism due to the selective reflection of circularly polarized light of one sense by the cholesteric helical structure existing in the solution. On the other hand, an induced circular dichroism is observed in the wavelength region corresponding to the absorption bands of an achiral dye molecule when the molecule is dissolved in the poly-γ-benzyl-d-glutamate liquid crystalline phase. The two modes of circular dichroism are correlated to the structure and the chirality of the cholesteric phase of concentrated polyglutamate solutions.