Informix Error -4051: Member "name" is defined in class "class", but not as a function.

Reasons / Common Causes

-4051 fires when code tries to invoke class::member() or object.member(), but the class has a member of that name that's a variable, not a function — per the official guidance, the member exists, just not as something callable.

1. A member invoked as a function that's actually defined as a variable, per the official guidance — the direct, only cause.

Solutions / Resolution

1. Check the spelling of the member name and the class or object name, per the official guidance.
2. Review the class declaration for the correct spelling of its member names, per the official guidance.

Examples

Calling a member variable as if it were a function

LET x = order.total()
-- -4051: total is a member variable on Order, not a function

Corrected

LET x = order.total

Diagnostic Checks

1. Check the class declaration for the named member's actual kind, and reference it as a variable rather than calling it.

Related Errors / Related Topics

• -4044 — "Member "name" not defined in class "class"." A related member-access error, about a member that doesn't exist at all rather than one that exists but isn't a function.
• -4045 — "Member "name" is defined in class "class", but not as a variable or constant." The mirror-image error, about a member expected to be a variable/constant but actually being a function.

A member is invoked like a function but is actually a variable — reference it directly instead of calling it.