diff --git a/git-mergetool.sh b/git-mergetool.sh
index c50e18a899..012afa5549 100755
--- a/git-mergetool.sh
+++ b/git-mergetool.sh
@@ -440,7 +440,7 @@ then
 fi
 
 printf "Merging:\n"
-printf "$files\n"
+printf "%s\n" "$files"
 
 IFS='
 '