diff --git a/command.go b/command.go
index 7f036307..6866f7d0 100644
--- a/command.go
+++ b/command.go
@@ -1099,7 +1099,7 @@ func (c *Command) ExecuteC() (cmd *Command, err error) {
 		// If root command has SilenceErrors flagged,
 		// all subcommands should respect it
 		if !cmd.SilenceErrors && !c.SilenceErrors {
-			c.PrintErrln(c.ErrPrefix(), err.Error())
+			c.PrintErrln(cmd.ErrPrefix(), err.Error())
 		}
 
 		// If root command has SilenceUsage flagged,
diff --git a/site/content/user_guide.md b/site/content/user_guide.md
index 03972bb9..93daadf5 100644
--- a/site/content/user_guide.md
+++ b/site/content/user_guide.md
@@ -598,8 +598,8 @@ the version template. The template can be customized using the
 
 ## Error Message Prefix
 
-Cobra prints an error message when being returned a non-nil error value.
-The default error message is `Error: error contents`.
+Cobra prints an error message when receiving a non-nil error value.
+The default error message is `Error: <error contents>`.
 The Prefix, `Error:` can be customized using the `cmd.SetErrPrefix(s string)` function.
 
 ## PreRun and PostRun Hooks