The first step in developing receptive language skills is understanding that words denote a particular object. This is a rudimentary form of abstract thinking that begins to develop in the first year of life for most children. Deaf children may be slightly behind the curve, particularly if their parents don't make a concerted effort to teach them words or gestures. However, by age one most deaf children understand that words denote objects, but they typically only recognize a few words.
Some deaf children retain some hearing ability, and there's no specific norm for receptive language with spoken words among deaf people. If your child's hearing is very poor or completely absent, she may never understand spoken words. But if she retains some hearing, she will steadily learn words, but typically at a rate slower than children who have full hearing. Between one and two, most deaf children can recognize frequently used words and names.
Lip reading is a form of receptive language that requires children not only to understand the nuances of each word's sound but also to maintain focus long enough to read lips. This skill can take several years to develop, and few toddlers are able to competently lip read. Young children can recognize broad facial expressions and obvious gestures, but typically they aren't able to lip read until five or six.
Children can begin learning sign language as soon as they are old enough to move their own hands -- a skill that develops steadily through the first year of life. Sign language also requires the ability to focus on someone else's movements, which can be more challenging than focusing on words alone. Between the ages of one and two, children who are regularly exposed to sign language can begin to recognize commonly used words, facial expressions and gestures. It can take several years, however, for them to carry on conversations in sign language. During the first few years of sign language development, a child's signs are often approximations of familiar signs -- just as when children who can hear sometimes mispronounce spoken words.