diff --git a/scss/_breadcrumb.scss b/scss/_breadcrumb.scss
index d5fba04a40..1a09bba20a 100644
--- a/scss/_breadcrumb.scss
+++ b/scss/_breadcrumb.scss
@@ -19,18 +19,17 @@
     content: "#{$breadcrumb-divider}";
   }
 
-  // When not using <ul> markup, browsers normally underline the ::before pseudo-element
-  // (the separator between the breadcrumbs) when the user hovers over its originating breadcrumb <a> element.
-  // In modern browsers, this underline can be suppressed by setting `display:inline-block` on the pseudo-element.
-  // (Why doesn't simply setting `text-decoration:none` on the pseudo-element work? Because that's how text-decoration propagation has been spec'd in CSS.)
-  // IE9-11 suffer from a bug which prevents that solution from working.
-  // For them, we apply a hack where we first set `text-decoration:underline` and then later set `text-decoration:none`, both on the pseudo-element.
-  // This tricks IE into suppressing the underline.
+  // IE9-11 hack to properly handle hyperlink underlines for breadcrumbs built
+  // without `<ul>`s. The `::before` pseudo-element generates an element
+  // *within* the .breadcrumb-item and thereby inherits the `text-decoration`.
+  //
+  // To trick IE into suppressing the underline, we give the pseudo-element an
+  // underline and then immediately remove it.
   + .breadcrumb-item:hover::before {
-    text-decoration: underline; // Part 1 of IE9-11 hack to suppress the underline
+    text-decoration: underline;
   }
   + .breadcrumb-item:hover::before {
-    text-decoration: none; // Suppress underlining of the separator in IE9-11 (requires an earlier setting of `text-decoration:underline`)
+    text-decoration: none;
   }
 
   &.active {