:info treats _a as an infix operator in ghci. Prelude> let _a = 'a' Prelude> :i _a -- _a is a variable, defined at <interactive>:1 (_a) :: Char should have not enclosed _a in parens. -- Hal Daume III | hdaume at isi.edu "Arrest this man, he talks in maths." | www.isi.edu/~hdaume