By "too complex" 4GL means "has too many component parts." In this statement, only simple variables (those that have a single component) can be used. If variable-name is an array, you must provide a subscript to select just one element. If it is a record, you must choose just one of its components. (However, if this statement permits a list of variables, as in the INITIALIZE statement, you can use asterisk or THRU notation to convert a record name into a list of components.)