diff --git a/src/common/impl/processing_linux.c b/src/common/impl/processing_linux.c
index 37767ac99..472cec5a3 100644
--- a/src/common/impl/processing_linux.c
+++ b/src/common/impl/processing_linux.c
@@ -128,6 +128,8 @@ const char* ffProcessSpawn(char* const argv[], bool useStdErr, FFProcessHandle*
     {
         close(pipes[0]);
         close(pipes[1]);
+        if (ret == ENOENT)
+            return "command not found";
         return "posix_spawnp() failed";
     }