diff --git a/makefiles/variables.mk b/makefiles/variables.mk
index 4aea90c..bfb87a3 100644
--- a/makefiles/variables.mk
+++ b/makefiles/variables.mk
@@ -33,7 +33,7 @@ endif
 
 # avoid a "libpcre.so.3: cannot open shared object file: No such file or directory" message, where possible
 ifneq ($(OS), Windows_NT)
-  NIM_PARAMS := $(NIM_PARAMS) -d:usePcreHeader --passL:\"-lpcre\"
+  NIM_PARAMS := $(NIM_PARAMS) -d:usePcreHeader --passL:"-lpcre"
 endif
 
 # guess who does parsing before variable expansion