c:\@Work\Perl>perl -wMstrict -le "my $s = qq{a ${ \str('tilt2') } operation needs @{[ str('x') ]} help}; print qq{'$s'}; ;; sub str { my ($s) = @_; ;; return $s eq 'level3' ? 'level3 stage' : $s eq 'tilt2' ? 'tilt2 snafu' : ! defined $s ? 'undefined' : qq{Edit '$s'} ; } " 'a tilt2 snafu operation needs Edit 'x' help'