diff --git a/Documentation/gitmodules.txt b/Documentation/gitmodules.txt
index 8f7c50f330..6f39f247a0 100644
--- a/Documentation/gitmodules.txt
+++ b/Documentation/gitmodules.txt
@@ -84,8 +84,8 @@ submodule.<name>.ignore::
 
 submodule.<name>.shallow::
 	When set to true, a clone of this submodule will be performed as a
-	shallow clone unless the user explicitly asks for a non-shallow
-	clone.
+	shallow clone (with a history depth of 1) unless the user explicitly
+	asks for a non-shallow clone.
 
 
 EXAMPLES