The present study anchored its inquiry in second language (L2) Chinese vocabulary acquisition (CVA) and learning Chinese as a foreign language. It investigated L2 CVA in four types: phonological comprehension, orthographic comprehension, phonological production and orthographic production, as well as their relationship with each other and with language proficiency.;Vocabulary data were collected from Chinese programs in four major universities in the U.S. across seven semester levels. Along with these data, students' language scores were collected. First, descriptive and nonparametric statistics were used to confirm the existence of the four types of vocabulary and their order of development. Then correlation and regression analyses were used to find out how they were associated with each other and with language skills. Finally, the relationship between the distance between vocabulary types and language skills was studied.;The study found a developing order for the four types of vocabulary, accounting for between 30% to 50% of the variance in language skill. Phonological comprehension vocabulary was largest but had the weakest relationship with language skills. Phonological production had the second smallest size but the strongest relationship with language skills. Orthographic production had the smallest size and a non-linear relationship with language skills. The distance did not correlate with language skills or correlated negatively with them.;It is concluded that vocabulary exists in different sizes and forms and develops along a continuum. Words that linger at lower stages of the continuum contribute less than those at upper stages. Pedagogical implications are discussed.
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