diff --git a/crates/proof/src/cs/mod.rs b/crates/proof/src/cs/mod.rs
index 3531745f8..ef560be46 100644
--- a/crates/proof/src/cs/mod.rs
+++ b/crates/proof/src/cs/mod.rs
@@ -16,6 +16,11 @@ pub use suggest::suggest;
 /// The Czech dictionary: `None` until first use, then the installed one (or an empty one).
 static DICT: RwLock<Option<Arc<AffixDict>>> = RwLock::new(None);
 
+/// Whether `DICT` holds a dictionary given with [`install_dictionary`] rather than one found on
+/// disk: it has no file of its own to report from [`installed_path`], even if a matching file
+/// happens to exist too.
+static DICT_IN_MEMORY: RwLock<bool> = RwLock::new(false);
+
 /// File names of a Czech Hunspell dictionary.
 const NAMES: &[&str] = &["cs_CZ", "cs-CZ", "cs"];
 
@@ -48,6 +53,7 @@ fn load_installed() -> AffixDict {
 pub fn install_dictionary(aff: &str, dic: &str) -> Result<(), String> {
     let d = AffixDict::from_hunspell(aff, dic, &[])?;
     *DICT.write().unwrap_or_else(|e| e.into_inner()) = Some(Arc::new(d));
+    *DICT_IN_MEMORY.write().unwrap_or_else(|e| e.into_inner()) = true;
     Ok(())
 }
 
@@ -55,12 +61,17 @@ pub fn install_dictionary(aff: &str, dic: &str) -> Result<(), String> {
 /// [`crate::hunspell::set_dictionary_dir`] or a dictionary was installed).
 pub fn reload_dictionary() {
     *DICT.write().unwrap_or_else(|e| e.into_inner()) = None;
+    *DICT_IN_MEMORY.write().unwrap_or_else(|e| e.into_inner()) = false;
 }
 
 /// The `.dic` file of the installed Czech dictionary, searching the dictionaries folder and
 /// the system locations now (File › Options › Proofing shows it, #3226); `None` when there is
-/// none. A dictionary given with [`install_dictionary`] has no file and isn't reported.
+/// none. A dictionary given with [`install_dictionary`] has no file and isn't reported, even if a
+/// matching file also happens to exist.
 pub fn installed_path() -> Option<std::path::PathBuf> {
+    if *DICT_IN_MEMORY.read().unwrap_or_else(|e| e.into_inner()) {
+        return None;
+    }
     crate::hunspell::find(NAMES).map(|(_, dic)| dic)
 }
 
diff --git a/crates/proof/src/lib.rs b/crates/proof/src/lib.rs
index d69ca336a..cdcd1b086 100644
--- a/crates/proof/src/lib.rs
+++ b/crates/proof/src/lib.rs
@@ -955,12 +955,12 @@ mod tests {
         );
         // #3226: Russian and Czech were missing from installed_dictionaries() entirely (no
         // installed_path() in either module), so neither ever showed up in File › Options ›
-        // Proofing, installed or not.
-        assert_eq!(
-            found[5..7],
-            [(ProofLang::Ru, Some(dir.join("ru_RU.dic"))), (ProofLang::Cs, Some(dir.join("cs_CZ.dic")))],
-            "Russian and Czech are reported too, between Turkish and Indonesian"
-        );
+        // Proofing, installed or not. Their languages, not their exact path, is what belongs
+        // here: unlike the four above, installed_path() for Russian and Czech also reflects
+        // whether install_dictionary() gave one directly (#3252 review), which ru's and cs's own
+        // test modules do, concurrently, in tests of their own — asserting an exact path here
+        // would race them for no reason this test needs to care about.
+        assert_eq!(found[5..7].iter().map(|(lang, _)| *lang).collect::<Vec<_>>(), [ProofLang::Ru, ProofLang::Cs], "{found:?}");
         assert!(is_correct_in("chrząszcz", ProofLang::Pl) && !is_correct_in("chrzonszcz", ProofLang::Pl));
         assert!(is_correct_in("дом", ProofLang::Ru) && !is_correct_in("дум", ProofLang::Ru));
     }
diff --git a/crates/proof/src/ru/mod.rs b/crates/proof/src/ru/mod.rs
index ffd09f7ef..caba4f8aa 100644
--- a/crates/proof/src/ru/mod.rs
+++ b/crates/proof/src/ru/mod.rs
@@ -37,6 +37,11 @@ pub use suggest::suggest;
 /// The Russian dictionary: `None` until first use, then the installed one (or an empty one).
 static DICT: RwLock<Option<Arc<AffixDict>>> = RwLock::new(None);
 
+/// Whether `DICT` holds a dictionary given with [`install_dictionary`] rather than one found on
+/// disk: it has no file of its own to report from [`installed_path`], even if a matching file
+/// happens to exist too.
+static DICT_IN_MEMORY: RwLock<bool> = RwLock::new(false);
+
 /// File names of a Russian Hunspell dictionary.
 const NAMES: &[&str] = &["ru_RU", "ru-RU", "ru"];
 
@@ -69,6 +74,7 @@ fn load_installed() -> AffixDict {
 pub fn install_dictionary(aff: &str, dic: &str) -> Result<(), String> {
     let d = AffixDict::from_hunspell(aff, dic, &[])?;
     *DICT.write().unwrap_or_else(|e| e.into_inner()) = Some(Arc::new(d));
+    *DICT_IN_MEMORY.write().unwrap_or_else(|e| e.into_inner()) = true;
     Ok(())
 }
 
@@ -76,12 +82,17 @@ pub fn install_dictionary(aff: &str, dic: &str) -> Result<(), String> {
 /// [`crate::hunspell::set_dictionary_dir`] or a dictionary was installed).
 pub fn reload_dictionary() {
     *DICT.write().unwrap_or_else(|e| e.into_inner()) = None;
+    *DICT_IN_MEMORY.write().unwrap_or_else(|e| e.into_inner()) = false;
 }
 
 /// The `.dic` file of the installed Russian dictionary, searching the dictionaries folder and
 /// the system locations now (File › Options › Proofing shows it, #3226); `None` when there is
-/// none. A dictionary given with [`install_dictionary`] has no file and isn't reported.
+/// none. A dictionary given with [`install_dictionary`] has no file and isn't reported, even if a
+/// matching file also happens to exist.
 pub fn installed_path() -> Option<std::path::PathBuf> {
+    if *DICT_IN_MEMORY.read().unwrap_or_else(|e| e.into_inner()) {
+        return None;
+    }
     crate::hunspell::find(NAMES).map(|(_, dic)| dic)
 }