$ perl -Mstrict -Mwarnings -e '(a,b,c,d,e,f) = [line.split()[i] for i in (0,1,3,5,7,9)]' Bareword "line" not allowed while "strict subs" in use at -e line 1. syntax error at -e line 1, near ")[" Execution of -e aborted due to compilation errors.