diff --git a/lib/ansible/modules/files/file.py b/lib/ansible/modules/files/file.py
index 9b892b2d1f..0cc3c0cece 100644
--- a/lib/ansible/modules/files/file.py
+++ b/lib/ansible/modules/files/file.py
@@ -60,7 +60,7 @@ options:
       the Unix command C(ln -s SRC DEST) treats relative paths.
   recurse:
     description:
-    - Recursively set the specified file attributes.
+    - Recursively set the specified file attributes on directory contents.
     - This applies only to C(state=directory).
     type: bool
     default: no