diff --git a/colcon_core/command.py b/colcon_core/command.py
index 41548dc3..6ac61028 100644
--- a/colcon_core/command.py
+++ b/colcon_core/command.py
@@ -190,7 +190,7 @@ def _main(
     colcon_logger.debug(f'Parsed command line arguments: {args}')
 
     # error: no verb provided
-    if not getattr(args, 'main', None):
+    if getattr(args, 'main', None) is None:
         print(parser.format_usage())
         return 'Error: No verb provided'