diff --git a/pkg/eval/compiler.go b/pkg/eval/compiler.go
index 5489ef42..e0e273ea 100644
--- a/pkg/eval/compiler.go
+++ b/pkg/eval/compiler.go
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ import (
 	"github.com/elves/elvish/pkg/diag"
 	"github.com/elves/elvish/pkg/eval/vars"
 	"github.com/elves/elvish/pkg/parse"
+	"github.com/elves/elvish/pkg/prog"
 )
 
 // compiler maintains the set of states needed when compiling a single source
@@ -124,3 +125,53 @@ func (cp *compiler) popScope() {
 	cp.captures[len(cp.captures)-1] = nil
 	cp.captures = cp.captures[:len(cp.captures)-1]
 }
+
+func (cp *compiler) checkDeprecatedBuiltin(name string, r diag.Ranger) {
+	msg := ""
+	minLevel := 15
+	switch name {
+	case "-source~":
+		msg = `the "source" command is deprecated; use "eval" instead`
+	case "ord~":
+		msg = `the "ord" command is deprecated; use "str:to-codepoints" instead`
+	case "chr~":
+		msg = `the "chr" command is deprecated; use "str:from-codepoints" instead`
+	case "has-prefix~":
+		msg = `the "has-prefix" command is deprecated; use "str:has-prefix" instead`
+	case "has-suffix~":
+		msg = `the "has-suffix" command is deprecated; use "str:has-suffix" instead`
+	case "esleep~":
+		msg = `the "esleep" command is deprecated; use "sleep" instead`
+	case "eval-symlinks~":
+		msg = `the "eval-symlinks" command is deprecated; use "path:eval-symlinks" instead`
+	case "path-abs~":
+		msg = `the "path-abs" command is deprecated; use "path:abs" instead`
+	case "path-base~":
+		msg = `the "path-base" command is deprecated; use "path:base" instead`
+	case "path-clean~":
+		msg = `the "path-clean" command is deprecated; use "path:clean" instead`
+	case "path-dir~":
+		msg = `the "path-dir" command is deprecated; use "path:dir" instead`
+	case "path-ext~":
+		msg = `the "path-ext" command is deprecated; use "path:ext" instead`
+	case "-is-dir~":
+		msg = `the "-is-dir" command is deprecated; use "path:is-dir" instead`
+	default:
+		return
+	}
+	cp.deprecate(r, msg, minLevel)
+}
+
+func (cp *compiler) deprecate(r diag.Ranger, msg string, minLevel int) {
+	if cp.warn == nil || r == nil {
+		return
+	}
+	dep := deprecation{cp.srcMeta.Name, r.Range(), msg}
+	if prog.DeprecationLevel >= minLevel && cp.deprecations.register(dep) {
+		err := diag.Error{
+			Type: "deprecation", Message: msg,
+			Context: diag.Context{
+				Name: cp.srcMeta.Name, Source: cp.srcMeta.Code, Ranging: r.Range()}}
+		fmt.Fprintln(cp.warn, err.Show(""))
+	}
+}
diff --git a/pkg/eval/compiler_test.go b/pkg/eval/compiler_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..7ef1df84
--- /dev/null
+++ b/pkg/eval/compiler_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,38 @@
+package eval_test
+
+import (
+	"bytes"
+	"strings"
+	"testing"
+
+	. "github.com/elves/elvish/pkg/eval"
+	"github.com/elves/elvish/pkg/parse"
+	"github.com/elves/elvish/pkg/prog"
+)
+
+func TestDeprecatedBuiltin(t *testing.T) {
+	testCompileTimeDeprecation(t, "ord a", `the "ord" command is deprecated`, 15)
+	// Deprecations of other builtins are implemented in the same way, so we
+	// don't test them repeatedly
+}
+
+func testCompileTimeDeprecation(t *testing.T, code, wantWarning string, level int) {
+	restore := prog.SetDeprecationLevel(level)
+	defer restore()
+
+	ev := NewEvaler()
+	errOutput := new(bytes.Buffer)
+
+	parseErr, compileErr := ev.Check(parse.Source{Code: code}, errOutput)
+	if parseErr != nil {
+		t.Errorf("got parse err %v", parseErr)
+	}
+	if compileErr != nil {
+		t.Errorf("got compile err %v", compileErr)
+	}
+
+	warning := errOutput.String()
+	if !strings.Contains(warning, wantWarning) {
+		t.Errorf("got warning %q, want warning containing %q", warning, wantWarning)
+	}
+}
diff --git a/pkg/eval/eval_test.go b/pkg/eval/eval_test.go
index 1e6d13d1..f27ae122 100644
--- a/pkg/eval/eval_test.go
+++ b/pkg/eval/eval_test.go
@@ -1,9 +1,7 @@
 package eval_test
 
 import (
-	"bytes"
 	"strconv"
-	"strings"
 	"sync"
 	"syscall"
 	"testing"
@@ -57,28 +55,6 @@ func TestEvalTimeDeprecate(t *testing.T) {
 	)
 }
 
-func TestCompileTimeDeprecation(t *testing.T) {
-	restore := prog.SetDeprecationLevel(15)
-	defer restore()
-
-	ev := NewEvaler()
-	errOutput := new(bytes.Buffer)
-
-	parseErr, compileErr := ev.Check(parse.Source{Code: "ord a"}, errOutput)
-	if parseErr != nil {
-		t.Errorf("got parse err %v", parseErr)
-	}
-	if compileErr != nil {
-		t.Errorf("got compile err %v", compileErr)
-	}
-
-	warning := errOutput.String()
-	wantWarning := `the "ord" command is deprecated`
-	if !strings.Contains(warning, wantWarning) {
-		t.Errorf("got warning %q, want warning containing %q", warning, wantWarning)
-	}
-}
-
 func TestMultipleEval(t *testing.T) {
 	Test(t,
 		That("x = hello").Then("put $x").Puts("hello"),
diff --git a/pkg/eval/var_ref.go b/pkg/eval/var_ref.go
index 4d856a92..a74bd7f0 100644
--- a/pkg/eval/var_ref.go
+++ b/pkg/eval/var_ref.go
@@ -1,12 +1,10 @@
 package eval
 
 import (
-	"fmt"
 	"strings"
 
 	"github.com/elves/elvish/pkg/diag"
 	"github.com/elves/elvish/pkg/eval/vars"
-	"github.com/elves/elvish/pkg/prog"
 )
 
 // This file implements variable resolution. Elvish has fully static lexical
@@ -187,52 +185,6 @@ func (cp *compiler) searchBuiltin(k string, r diag.Ranger) int {
 	return index
 }
 
-func (cp *compiler) checkDeprecatedBuiltin(name string, r diag.Ranger) {
-	if cp.warn == nil || r == nil {
-		return
-	}
-	msg := ""
-	minLevel := 15
-	switch name {
-	case "-source~":
-		msg = `the "source" command is deprecated; use "eval" instead`
-	case "ord~":
-		msg = `the "ord" command is deprecated; use "str:to-codepoints" instead`
-	case "chr~":
-		msg = `the "chr" command is deprecated; use "str:from-codepoints" instead`
-	case "has-prefix~":
-		msg = `the "has-prefix" command is deprecated; use "str:has-prefix" instead`
-	case "has-suffix~":
-		msg = `the "has-suffix" command is deprecated; use "str:has-suffix" instead`
-	case "esleep~":
-		msg = `the "esleep" command is deprecated; use "sleep" instead`
-	case "eval-symlinks~":
-		msg = `the "eval-symlinks" command is deprecated; use "path:eval-symlinks" instead`
-	case "path-abs~":
-		msg = `the "path-abs" command is deprecated; use "path:abs" instead`
-	case "path-base~":
-		msg = `the "path-base" command is deprecated; use "path:base" instead`
-	case "path-clean~":
-		msg = `the "path-clean" command is deprecated; use "path:clean" instead`
-	case "path-dir~":
-		msg = `the "path-dir" command is deprecated; use "path:dir" instead`
-	case "path-ext~":
-		msg = `the "path-ext" command is deprecated; use "path:ext" instead`
-	case "-is-dir~":
-		msg = `the "-is-dir" command is deprecated; use "path:is-dir" instead`
-	default:
-		return
-	}
-	dep := deprecation{cp.srcMeta.Name, r.Range(), msg}
-	if prog.DeprecationLevel >= minLevel && cp.deprecations.register(dep) {
-		err := diag.Error{
-			Type: "deprecation", Message: msg,
-			Context: diag.Context{
-				Name: cp.srcMeta.Name, Source: cp.srcMeta.Code, Ranging: r.Range()}}
-		fmt.Fprintln(cp.warn, err.Show(""))
-	}
-}
-
 func (fm *Frame) searchLocal(k string) int {
 	return fm.local.lookup(k)
 }