diff --git a/.github/scripts/verify-synopsis.pl b/.github/scripts/verify-synopsis.pl
index aa26917946..1c6b00b60b 100755
--- a/.github/scripts/verify-synopsis.pl
+++ b/.github/scripts/verify-synopsis.pl
@@ -23,10 +23,13 @@
 #
 ###########################################################################
 
+use strict;
+use warnings;
+
 my @files = @ARGV;
 my $cfile = "test.c";
 
-if($files[0] eq "-h") {
+if(!@files || $files[0] eq "-h") {
     print "Usage: verify-synopsis [man pages]\n";
     exit;
 }