diff --git a/configure.ac b/configure.ac
index 0386d11f527a82af1875cb7dce90ea39bedf9737..b8268b392881096cb2f9284682b10aebbdad92e2 100644
--- a/configure.ac
+++ b/configure.ac
@@ -3364,12 +3364,11 @@ LIBCURL_LIBS=$LIBS
 AC_SUBST(LIBCURL_LIBS)
 AC_SUBST(CURL_NETWORK_LIBS)
 AC_SUBST(CURL_NETWORK_AND_TIME_LIBS)
-dnl LIBS is a magic variable that's used for every link
 
-dnl BLANK_AT_MAKETIME might be used in some of our Makefile.am files to
-dnl blank LIBS variable used in generated makefile at makefile processing
-dnl time. Our test server's Makefile.am uses this to prevent global LIBS
-dnl from being used for any test server build target.
+dnl BLANK_AT_MAKETIME may be used in our Makefile.am files to blank
+dnl LIBS variable used in generated makefile at makefile processing
+dnl time. Doing this functionally prevents LIBS from being used for
+dnl all link targets in given makefile.
 BLANK_AT_MAKETIME=
 AC_SUBST(BLANK_AT_MAKETIME)
 
diff --git a/docs/examples/Makefile.am b/docs/examples/Makefile.am
index 49c20361f5fda22c87a82aa6575410a406700e30..865f0937123813814210b14e093d747578726453 100644
--- a/docs/examples/Makefile.am
+++ b/docs/examples/Makefile.am
@@ -48,7 +48,7 @@ if USE_CPPFLAG_CURL_STATICLIB
 AM_CPPFLAGS += -DCURL_STATICLIB
 endif
 
-# Prevent global LIBS from influencing examples build targets
+# Prevent LIBS from being used for all link targets
 LIBS = $(BLANK_AT_MAKETIME)
 
 # Dependencies
diff --git a/lib/Makefile.am b/lib/Makefile.am
index c8a88cd1383e0639dc856726eb3b828ec9f882cf..91790267a55cfdc8e8b94ab793d345cbdbb2b9a5 100644
--- a/lib/Makefile.am
+++ b/lib/Makefile.am
@@ -132,7 +132,7 @@ if VERSIONED_SYMBOLS
 VERSIONED_SYMBOLS = -Wl,--version-script=libcurl.vers
 endif
 
-# Prevent global LIBS from influencing lib build targets
+# Prevent LIBS from being used for all link targets
 LIBS = $(BLANK_AT_MAKETIME)
 
 libcurl_la_LDFLAGS = $(UNDEF) $(VERSIONINFO) $(MIMPURE) $(VERSIONED_SYMBOLS) $(LIBCURL_LIBS)
diff --git a/src/Makefile.am b/src/Makefile.am
index 7839904d53cc11ad932ed3c86b53f701ede6c584..6de750114e06129510303cb9ffce52966fe71b72 100644
--- a/src/Makefile.am
+++ b/src/Makefile.am
@@ -54,7 +54,7 @@ include Makefile.inc
 # This might hold -Werror
 CFLAGS += @CURL_CFLAG_EXTRAS@ @LIBMETALINK_CFLAGS@
 
-# Prevent global LIBS from influencing src build targets
+# Prevent LIBS from being used for all link targets
 LIBS = $(BLANK_AT_MAKETIME)
 
 if USE_EXPLICIT_LIB_DEPS
diff --git a/tests/libtest/Makefile.am b/tests/libtest/Makefile.am
index a9d0b90310c529791561cba6b143de1874f5c0b8..df13df1110dbffb70dbf32310c97412be898ffb5 100644
--- a/tests/libtest/Makefile.am
+++ b/tests/libtest/Makefile.am
@@ -55,8 +55,7 @@ test1022.pl Makefile.inc notexists.pl
 
 CFLAG_CURL_SYMBOL_HIDING = @CFLAG_CURL_SYMBOL_HIDING@
 
-# Prevent global LIBS from influencing libtest build targets
-BLANK_AT_MAKETIME = @BLANK_AT_MAKETIME@
+# Prevent LIBS from being used for all link targets
 LIBS = $(BLANK_AT_MAKETIME)
 
 if USE_EXPLICIT_LIB_DEPS
diff --git a/tests/server/Makefile.am b/tests/server/Makefile.am
index 85e0c097c1fb177b49ec5469407655cca3a66fef..d4ef252db13f697919931c52ed009c326f2a6e78 100644
--- a/tests/server/Makefile.am
+++ b/tests/server/Makefile.am
@@ -50,8 +50,7 @@ AM_CPPFLAGS = -I$(top_builddir)/include/curl \
               -I$(top_srcdir)/lib
 endif
 
-# Prevent global LIBS from influencing test server build targets
-BLANK_AT_MAKETIME = @BLANK_AT_MAKETIME@
+# Prevent LIBS from being used for all link targets
 LIBS = $(BLANK_AT_MAKETIME)
 
 if DOING_NATIVE_WINDOWS
diff --git a/tests/unit/Makefile.am b/tests/unit/Makefile.am
index 0582168141fd05d0d63828785c16845925f857b9..eb29241ad43cfdd867d698b9388512486c470071 100644
--- a/tests/unit/Makefile.am
+++ b/tests/unit/Makefile.am
@@ -54,7 +54,10 @@ endif
 
 EXTRA_DIST = Makefile.inc
 
-LDADD = $(top_builddir)/lib/libcurlu.la @LDFLAGS@ @LIBCURL_LIBS@ @LIBS@
+# Prevent LIBS from being used for all link targets
+LIBS = $(BLANK_AT_MAKETIME)
+
+LDADD = $(top_builddir)/lib/libcurlu.la @LDFLAGS@ @LIBCURL_LIBS@
 DEPENDENCIES = $(top_builddir)/lib/libcurlu.la
 AM_CPPFLAGS += -DUNITTESTS