diff --git a/.bashrc b/.bashrc
index 31e867d..ed939d9 100644
--- a/.bashrc
+++ b/.bashrc
@@ -24,13 +24,14 @@ __lazy_ssh_agent() {
 alias ssh='__lazy_ssh_agent; ssh'
 alias sudo='__lazy_ssh_agent; sudo'
 
-# alias to colourise make output
-_make() {
+# colourises make output, so when it prints via
+# $(warning) or $(error), it is formatted properly
+__colour_make() {
 	make "$@" 2> >(sed -E \
 		-e "s/^([Mm]akefile:[0-9]+:.*)/\x1b[33m\1\x1b[0m/" \
 		-e "s/^.*error.*$/\x1b[31m&\x1b[0m/I" >&2)
 }
-alias make='_make'
+alias make='__colour_make'
 
 # lazily loads the git utilities, to prevent slowdowns
 __lazy_git_ps1() {