ABSTRACT Purpose To analyze the recognition of the pictures and contexts familiarity from the Sentence Production Program for Aphasia (SPPA) to acquire data determining its potential use in Portuguese and/or need for adaption. Methods The stimuli for English speakers were first translated, back-translated and adjusted without changing the syntactic structures of the phrases. The material was then tested in 39 highly literate individuals. In the first stage of the study, the adults had to produce a phrase corresponding to each picture. In the second stage, participants were exposed to the original phrases associated with their respective contexts. Participants were given an answer sheet containing numbered responses for each picture and rated the familiarity of the contexts on an analogic scale ranging from 0 to 10. Results Based on the sentences produced by the participants, the overall mean agreement of stimuli with responses for the pictures from the SPPA was 35.5%. Familiarity of the contexts with pictures was greater in scenes involving sentences with a syntactic structure similar to that of Portuguese. Conclusion Given most stimuli had a low level of recognition, adaptations are required for use of the program in the Brazilian population. The study allowed identification of those pictures which need adapting before use in the rehabilitation of agrammatic patients in Brazil.