diff --git a/celt/celt.c b/celt/celt.c
index c0a1e0da..a610de4f 100644
--- a/celt/celt.c
+++ b/celt/celt.c
@@ -280,6 +280,9 @@ const char *opus_strerror(int error)
 const char *opus_get_version_string(void)
 {
     return "libopus " PACKAGE_VERSION
+    /* Applications may rely on the presence of this substring in the version
+       string to determine if they have a fixed-point or floating-point build
+       at runtime. */
 #ifdef FIXED_POINT
           "-fixed"
 #endif
diff --git a/include/opus_defines.h b/include/opus_defines.h
index 32b7c976..41e81f08 100644
--- a/include/opus_defines.h
+++ b/include/opus_defines.h
@@ -713,6 +713,10 @@ extern "C" {
 OPUS_EXPORT const char *opus_strerror(int error);
 
 /** Gets the libopus version string.
+  *
+  * Applications may look for the substring "-fixed" in the version string to
+  * determine whether they have a fixed-point or floating-point build at
+  * runtime.
   *
   * @returns Version string
   */