diff --git a/ChangeLog b/ChangeLog
index f74749b11..9bbbd7eac 100644
--- a/ChangeLog
+++ b/ChangeLog
@@ -1,3 +1,17 @@
+2026-01-20  Bruno Haible <bruno@clisp.org>
+
+	* doc/doc.am:
+	* font/devpdf/devpdf.am:
+	* tmac/tmac.am: Fix portability problem involving BSD Make.
+	Define `*_builddir` macros without interpolating `top_builddir`.
+	groff does not use recursive make; all file specifications are
+	resolved relative to the top of the build tree, so the
+	interpolation is unnecessary, and with BSD Make it causes
+	spurious failures because that implementation uses strings, not
+	file identities, as the nodes of its dependency graph.  So if
+	you ask for "foo" to be built but have only a rule for a target
+	named "./foo", BSD Make fails, whereas GNU Make does not.
+
 2026-01-21  G. Branden Robinson <g.branden.robinson@gmail.com>
 
 	* font/devps/devps.am: Drop unused macro `devps_builddir`.
diff --git a/contrib/sboxes/ChangeLog b/contrib/sboxes/ChangeLog
index 657d09c11..8514b94ef 100644
--- a/contrib/sboxes/ChangeLog
+++ b/contrib/sboxes/ChangeLog
@@ -1,3 +1,15 @@
+2026-01-20  Bruno Haible <bruno@clisp.org>
+
+	* sboxes.am: Fix portability problem involving BSD Make.  Define
+	`sboxes_builddir` macro without interpolating `top_builddir`.
+	groff does not use recursive make; all file specifications are
+	resolved relative to the top of the build tree, so the
+	interpolation is unnecessary, and with BSD Make it causes
+	spurious failures because that implementation uses strings, not
+	file identities, as the nodes of its dependency graph.  So if
+	you ask for "foo" to be built but have only a rule for a target
+	named "./foo", BSD Make fails, whereas GNU Make does not.
+
 2025-12-31  G. Branden Robinson <g.branden.robinson@gmail.com>
 
 	* sboxes.am (EXTRA_DIST): Ship "COPYRIGHT" file in distribution
diff --git a/contrib/sboxes/sboxes.am b/contrib/sboxes/sboxes.am
index 54fb61e3a..5e60e9c4b 100644
--- a/contrib/sboxes/sboxes.am
+++ b/contrib/sboxes/sboxes.am
@@ -24,7 +24,7 @@
 # along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 sboxes_srcdir = $(top_srcdir)/contrib/sboxes
-sboxes_builddir = $(top_builddir)/contrib/sboxes
+sboxes_builddir = contrib/sboxes
 sboxesnotquine = $(sboxes_srcdir)/notquine.sed
 
 sboxestmacdir = $(tmacdir)
diff --git a/doc/doc.am b/doc/doc.am
index eef0d0d15..43e2683f3 100644
--- a/doc/doc.am
+++ b/doc/doc.am
@@ -21,7 +21,7 @@
 # along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 doc_srcdir = $(abs_top_srcdir)/doc
-doc_builddir = $(abs_top_builddir)/doc
+doc_builddir = doc
 
 # Some document sources are parameterized in configuration options like
 # the groff version number and the command prefix.  Use this in rules to
diff --git a/font/devpdf/devpdf.am b/font/devpdf/devpdf.am
index 889a3e8bf..d73054a66 100644
--- a/font/devpdf/devpdf.am
+++ b/font/devpdf/devpdf.am
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@
 # along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 devpdf_srcdir = $(top_srcdir)/font/devpdf
-devpdf_builddir = $(top_builddir)/font/devpdf
+devpdf_builddir = font/devpdf
 devpdffont_descriptions_from_devps = \
   font/devpdf/S \
   font/devpdf/ZD \
diff --git a/tmac/tmac.am b/tmac/tmac.am
index ab9aee115..0728beab9 100644
--- a/tmac/tmac.am
+++ b/tmac/tmac.am
@@ -20,7 +20,7 @@
 # along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 tmac_srcdir = $(top_srcdir)/tmac
-tmac_builddir = $(top_builddir)/tmac
+tmac_builddir = tmac
 
 man7_MANS += \
   tmac/groff_ms.7 \