diff --git a/meson.build b/meson.build
index 866bfd27..f2550641 100644
--- a/meson.build
+++ b/meson.build
@@ -570,23 +570,40 @@ foreach h : headers
 endforeach
 
 if want_textui and conf.get('HAVE_TERM_H', 0) == 1
-  if not cc.links('''
+  if cc.links('''
 #include <stdio.h>
 #include <term.h>
-int main () {
+int main (void) {
   return tputs("x", 1, putchar);
 }
-''', dependencies : textui_dep)
-    if cc.has_header('curses.h') and cc.links('''
+''', args : '-pedantic-errors', dependencies : textui_dep, name : 'Curses working')
+    # ok
+  else
+    has_curses_h = cc.has_header('curses.h')
+    if has_curses_h and cc.links('''
 #include <curses.h>
 #include <term.h>
-int main () {
+int main (void) {
   return tputs("x", 1, putchar);
 }
-''', dependencies : textui_dep, name : 'working Curses')
+''', args : '-pedantic-errors', dependencies : textui_dep, name : 'Curses working with curses.h')
       conf.set('NEED_CURSES_H', 1, description : 'tputs needs curses.h')
     else
-      error('could not link terminfo')
+      if has_curses_h and cc.links('''
+#include <curses.h>
+#include <term.h>
+int char_putchar (char c) {
+  return putchar(c);
+}
+int main (void) {
+  return tputs("x", 1, char_putchar);
+}
+''', args : '-pedantic-errors', dependencies : textui_dep, name : 'Curses with tputs third argument arg char')
+        conf.set('NEED_CURSES_H', 1, description : 'tputs needs curses.h')
+        conf.set('TPUTS_SVR4', 1, description : 'third argument of tputs has the type int (*)(char)')
+      else
+        error('could not link terminfo')
+      endif
     endif
   endif
 endif
diff --git a/src/fe-text/term-terminfo.c b/src/fe-text/term-terminfo.c
index d4db942a..9bcdd5a0 100644
--- a/src/fe-text/term-terminfo.c
+++ b/src/fe-text/term-terminfo.c
@@ -318,7 +318,12 @@ void term_window_scroll(TERM_WINDOW *window, int count)
 		term_lines_empty[window->y+y] = FALSE;
 }
 
-inline static int term_putchar(int c)
+#ifdef TPUTS_SVR4
+#define putc_arg_t char
+#else
+#define putc_arg_t int
+#endif
+inline static int term_putchar(putc_arg_t c)
 {
         return fputc(c, current_term->out);
 }
diff --git a/src/fe-text/terminfo-core.c b/src/fe-text/terminfo-core.c
index 48e1de8c..6e904c9e 100644
--- a/src/fe-text/terminfo-core.c
+++ b/src/fe-text/terminfo-core.c
@@ -6,8 +6,13 @@
 #  define _POSIX_VDISABLE 0
 #endif
 
+#ifdef TPUTS_SVR4
+#define putc_arg_t char
+#else
+#define putc_arg_t int
+#endif
 #define tput(s) tputs(s, 0, term_putchar)
-inline static int term_putchar(int c)
+inline static int term_putchar(putc_arg_t c)
 {
         return fputc(c, current_term->out);
 }