diff --git a/pkgs/applications/office/scribus/unstable.nix b/pkgs/applications/office/scribus/unstable.nix
index 6aed41d7f9af..21adb90cab9e 100644
--- a/pkgs/applications/office/scribus/unstable.nix
+++ b/pkgs/applications/office/scribus/unstable.nix
@@ -83,6 +83,11 @@ mkDerivation rec {
     qttools
   ];
 
+  cmakeFlags = [
+    # poppler uses std::optional
+    "-DWANT_CPP17=ON"
+  ];
+
   meta = with lib; {
     maintainers = with maintainers; [
       erictapen