1:46 >perl -Mstrict -wE "my $q = \my @c; @c = ('f' .. 'h'); say $q, ' --> ', @$q;" ARRAY(0x177554c) --> fgh 1:46 >perl -Mstrict -wE "my $q = \my(@c); @c = ('f' .. 'h'); say $q, ' --> ', $$q;" Use of uninitialized value in say at -e line 1. SCALAR(0x1d20f6c) --> 1:46 >