diff --git a/changelog.d/15168.doc b/changelog.d/15168.doc
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..dbd3c54714
--- /dev/null
+++ b/changelog.d/15168.doc
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+Correct the description of the behavior of `registration_shared_secret_path` on startup.
diff --git a/docs/usage/configuration/config_documentation.md b/docs/usage/configuration/config_documentation.md
index 4139961810..015855ee7e 100644
--- a/docs/usage/configuration/config_documentation.md
+++ b/docs/usage/configuration/config_documentation.md
@@ -2227,8 +2227,8 @@ allows the shared secret to be specified in an external file.
 
 The file should be a plain text file, containing only the shared secret.
 
-If this file does not exist, Synapse will create a new signing
-key on startup and store it in this file.
+If this file does not exist, Synapse will create a new shared
+secret on startup and store it in this file.
 
 Example configuration:
 ```yaml