diff --git a/wpiutil/src/main/native/include/wpi/json.h b/wpiutil/src/main/native/include/wpi/json.h
index 9094ec6ada..0197cd61a3 100644
--- a/wpiutil/src/main/native/include/wpi/json.h
+++ b/wpiutil/src/main/native/include/wpi/json.h
@@ -2122,7 +2122,7 @@ template<typename IteratorType> class iteration_proxy
 
                 // use key from the object
                 case value_t::object:
-                    return anchor.key();
+                    return std::string{anchor.key()};
 
                 // use an empty key for all primitive types
                 default: