This paper reports a study that investigated the development of second language (L2) communication strategies (code-switching, all-purpose words, word coinage, approximation, and circumlocution) over time. In the study, 8 adult learners in a full-time English as a second language program provided oral narrations of an eight-frame picture story at Time 1 and again 15 weeks later. I examined the transcripts of the 4 learners who demonstrated improvement over time. All communication strategies in the narratives at Times 1 and 2 were identified, coded, and quantified. Linguistic analyses of the narratives revealed an overall decrease in the use of the communication strategies over time, but an increased use of circumlocution. The study provided further evidence of a hierarchical order in the development of L2 oral communication strategies.