diff --git a/src/lib.rs b/src/lib.rs
index 7be9926076..8d6e2d2d5a 100644
--- a/src/lib.rs
+++ b/src/lib.rs
@@ -33,10 +33,23 @@
 //! # Cancel safety
 //!
 //! Futures returned by hyper are cancel safe: dropping a future before it
-//! completes is the supported way to cancel the operation. See the
-//! documentation on individual futures — for example `SendRequest::send_request`
-//! in `client::conn::http1` and `client::conn::http2` — for the protocol-
-//! specific behavior on cancellation.
+//! completes is the supported way to cancel the operation. The protocol in
+//! use changes what that cancellation actually does on the wire:
+//!
+//! - **HTTP/1** has no in-protocol way to abort a single request without
+//!   affecting the shared connection, so dropping an in-flight request future
+//!   closes the underlying TCP connection. Any subsequent call on the same
+//!   `SendRequest` returns a `canceled` error; the connection cannot be
+//!   reused.
+//! - **HTTP/2** resets the single stream with `RST_STREAM` (`CANCEL` error
+//!   code) and notifies the peer immediately rather than continuing to
+//!   deliver a response body that would be discarded. The shared connection
+//!   stays usable for other in-flight and future requests.
+//!
+//! See the documentation on individual futures — for example
+//! `SendRequest::send_request` in `client::conn::http1` and the equivalent
+//! in `client::conn::http2` — for the protocol-specific behavior on
+//! cancellation.
 //!
 //! # Optional Features
 //!