diff --git a/plugin-gradle/CHANGES.md b/plugin-gradle/CHANGES.md
index 9e25b1d3d3..fa90cd957e 100644
--- a/plugin-gradle/CHANGES.md
+++ b/plugin-gradle/CHANGES.md
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ We adhere to the [keepachangelog](https://keepachangelog.com/en/1.0.0/) format (
   * Adds support for worktrees (fixes [#1765](https://github.com/diffplug/spotless/issues/1765))
 * Bump default `google-java-format` version to latest `1.24.0` -> `1.28.0`. ([#2345](https://github.com/diffplug/spotless/pull/2345))
 * Bump default `ktlint` version to latest `1.5.0` -> `1.7.1`. ([#2555](https://github.com/diffplug/spotless/pull/2555))
+* Running `spotlessCheck` with violations unilaterally produces the error message `Run './gradlew spotlessApply' to fix these violations`. ([#2592](https://github.com/diffplug/spotless/issues/2592))
 ### Fixed
 * Respect system gitconfig when performing git operations ([#2404](https://github.com/diffplug/spotless/issues/2404))
 
diff --git a/plugin-gradle/src/main/java/com/diffplug/gradle/spotless/SpotlessCheck.java b/plugin-gradle/src/main/java/com/diffplug/gradle/spotless/SpotlessCheck.java
index 175a828a66..9b798eb528 100644
--- a/plugin-gradle/src/main/java/com/diffplug/gradle/spotless/SpotlessCheck.java
+++ b/plugin-gradle/src/main/java/com/diffplug/gradle/spotless/SpotlessCheck.java
@@ -138,12 +138,7 @@ void init(SpotlessTaskImpl impl) {
 		getProjectPath().set(getProject().getPath());
 		getEncoding().set(impl.getEncoding());
 		getRunToFixMessage().convention(
-				"Run '" + calculateGradleCommand() + " " + getTaskPathPrefix() + "spotlessApply' to fix these violations.");
-	}
-
-	private String getTaskPathPrefix() {
-		String path = getProjectPath().get();
-		return path.equals(":") ? ":" : path + ":";
+				"Run '" + calculateGradleCommand() + " :spotlessApply' to fix all violations.");
 	}
 
 	private static String calculateGradleCommand() {