Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-18104191-20130913145529/@comment-3390396-20130915055356

Well, TvTropes is a site that lists plot devices for fun and also for budding writers to consult, and "TvPlotDevices" is barely catchy and as stupid a name as names can ever become. That's the only reason for the naming of TvTropes I can think of right now.

They seem to define "trope" as a plot device that is somewhat recurring in fictional pieces.