The underscore seems to be just a variable in this case. And since it is not initialized, it has a value of 0. Thus, it is $_equivalent $0, which applies to the entire line being processed. I think it could also be written $x, since x would be an uninitialized variable.
Since it appears in the makefile, you need two dollar signs (this is a special character in the makefile) to create one dollar sign in the command.
Nemo, @ - . , @, .