Trope

A trope is a storytelling device or convention, a shortcut for describing situations the storyteller can reasonably assume the audience will recognize. Tropes are the means by which a story is told by anyone who has a story to tell. The folks at TV Tropes collect them, for the fun involved. There are thousands of tropes mentioned on their site, and hopefully they'll all be listed here:

A Dog Named "Dog"

There is an ad named Ad. And an Atlanta souvenir cup named Atlanta Souviner Cup. And a can of bacon cola named Bacon Cola. And a bean sprout named Bean Sprout. And a Big Boy locomotive named Big Boy. And... you probably get it by now. Some competitors have the suffix -y in their name, like Briny, Rolly, Sketchy, and me. However, others are not named like that. See 123 Referee, 9150625, Bot the mew, Creative Commons & Copyright, Dexter Cut, etc.

Everything Is an Instrument

Music has no boundaries, especially when it comes to the objects people can make music with. So, yes, mayonnaise can still be called an instrument.

Stock Scream

These sound effect are perhaps the most recognizable sound effects in the industry. Once you can identify them, then you won't unhear it.

Wilhelm Scream

This particular scream needs no introduction. It's actually the fourth in a recording of six. It was initially intended for usage whenever someone gets attacked by an alligator, but now it's a common running gag. Oh, how the tables have turned...

Howie Scream

Another notable scream, named after the character Howie Long from Broken Arrow, where it was heard during his death.

Stock Sound Effects

Oh boy, this will be a doozy. There are a ton of examples of overused stock sound effects that are used, especially since it's harder to go out and get your own samples.

Animals

That damn sea lion

It's obvious that not all pinnipeds sound like the California sea lion. Nevertheless, these barks induce the need for total seal extinction.

That moo

You've heard this many times in your life, and you'll hear it many more times, especially as it might be another upcoming Wiki Camp 2 meme.

Those trumpets

Not only is it being used in relation to elephants and elephant seals, but it might sound whenever Nerpy Scuba is mentioned.

Cucco's crow

Virtually every sunrise is accompanied by the familiar crow of Cucco from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.

Those harsh quacks

Someone in Soundeffects Wiki says a duck call might've been used for this recording instead of an actual duck. The source remains a mystery to this day.

Sources aside, not all ducks are that noisy.

Owls

There are actually multiple species of owls whose calls have been heavily used. Firstly, we have the great horned owl's distinctive hoots:

And then we have these high-pitched calls from a tawny owl, which many Thomas & Friends fans will be very familiar with:

Of course, not all owls sound the same. Take the screeches of a barn owl or the calls of a burrowing owl.

Red-tailed hawk

That is, in fact, a red-tailed hawk. All this time, you thought it was a bald eagle, but they don't even come close. Instead, the calls of the bald eagle sound weaker and very similar to that of a gull, like this:

That "dolphin" call

What the fuck?!

There is no way that a dolphin would actually sound like that. Ever. That is actually a heavily edited recording of a kookaburra. Bottlenose dolphins, for example, sound something like this:

Chimpanzees

These sound like the distinctive pant-hoots of a chimpanzee. Despite this, it is commonly used for monkeys and apes in general, even when the vast majority of them don't make such noises.

Common loons

A few seconds into this recording and you will hear the familiar tremolo calls of common loons. They are commonly associated with the open wilderness.

Kookaburra

This specific recording is commonly used during scenes of a tropical jungle. However, the bird in question, the laughing kookaburra, is actually native to Australia and New Guinea.

Domestic goose

The sound designers of Shrek 2 incorrectly used this recording of a domestic goose for a pair of mute swans. Mute swans don't even sound close to that.

Single Classic "Wolf" Howl

That's not a wolf. Enough said. And plus, wolves do not howl at the moon.

Oh, so you wonder what wolves actually sound like? Well, there's this recording.

Whinnies. Countless whinnies.

This is just an example. I put it there because it's in The Legend of Zelda games. There are many recordings of whinnies that you'll typically hear.

Grizzly bear

Recordings like this are typical not just for bears, but for other animals, even ones that aren't even close to sounding like a grizzly bear.

Pacific tree frog

Out of over 7,500 species, the Pacific tree frog just has to be the stereotypical "ribbit" that people say frogs make. Like, come on! There are a lot more calls made by different frogs than just that.

That Poor Cat

Enough said.

Rodents

If you hear a mouse, rat, or any rodent squeaking in your piece of media, then chances are it either came from a prairie dog...

...or foley.

So-called "bat" screech

This sounds more like a hawk than a bat. You are more likely to hear very high-pitched chirps than something like this from a real bat.

Big cats

Roars from various big cats have been used for various other animals. For example, Lyle Lyle Crocodile uses this recording of a tiger for the titular character.

And then there's this recording of a leopard, which has somehow been labelled as a lion.

TV Tropes also mentions a specific recording of a cougar. Chances are it's this one:

Red fox

Apparently any scene of a British countryside will have a specific recording of a red fox, although we don't know what exactly that recording is... At least we know what the fox says now.

Herring gulls

Herring gulls are the stereotypical gull, and they make the stereotypical call of a gull. There are quite a few notable recordings, including this one, which includes a small flock of them.

Stereotypical meow

Throughout the media, recordings like this are still being used for cats to this day, ie. on Scratch as the default sound. Most cats often don't meow as high-pitched as this.

That jungle ambience recording

I wonder what that species of bird that makes those "wee-weeyah" calls is.

Cicadas

On a typical summer day in Japan, you'll probably hear a chorus of cicadas. For this reason, recordings like this are commonly heard in anime.

Crickets

🔊 for being obtrusive

Background music

Foghorn

It started with a radio ad for soap, then it ironically became associated with horrid odours, and now it's a meme.

People

Stock screams

Used so much to the point where they have their own entry. The most famous, the Wilhelm scream, can be heard above.

Diddy Laugh

It was named that way because of its notable usage in Diddy Kong Racing. Also, you may think that two children were laughing, but those are two separate tracks made by the same child, 11-year-old-at-the-time Australian girl Astoria Morgan.

That gasp

Perhaps the most iconic usage of this recording is when something notable happens in Super Smash Bros.

"WOOP WOOP!!"

I wonder who that someone may be, and I wonder if they realize their distinctive whoops can be heard everywhere.

Vehicles

Truck doppler

This recording is commonly used for any instance of a truck passing by.

Level crossing

This is a typical American level crossing, with a mechanical bell. Such bells have mostly been replaced with electronic bells.

Train approaching a level crossing

According to the TV Tropes website, you'll probably identify not only the bell used, but also the horn from the locomotive. Above is an example of you might have heard before.

Three train horn blasts

Five seconds in and you will hear three short blasts coming from a locomotive's horn. According to the website, it is commonly associated with runaway trains, despite the fact that three short blasts mean the train is about to reverse.

That steam whistle

If there happens to be a steam locomotive in the piece of media you are consuming, or a goal is scored while SMW is in VC, then chances are this whistle will sound. The sad thing is that the whistle at the time of recording was actually fouled. But, alas, it is the generic North American steam locomotive whistle and I don't think we can escape that thought, even if the same tones will most likely never be collectively heard in real life again, since the same whistle (worn by Canadian National No. 3254) was repaired.