The growth of vapour-deposited tellurium on uniaxially oriented polyethylene substrates of various crystallinity is examined. Two orientations of the tellurium appear, depending apparently on the crystallinity of the respective substrate. That these individual orientations are of various origins is concluded from our investigations. On totally amorphous films, obtained after electron irradiation of the substrate films, only one preferred orientation of the Te remains in accordance with our model, which is presented to explain the mechanisms of the respective orientations of tellurium onto polyethylene.