History Main / TrivialTitle

* ''Literature/ADanceWithDragons'', the fifth book of ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'', refers to two things, both of which happen near the end, and are largely trivial to the overall plot. The first is Daenerys Targaryen successfully reining Drogon, becoming the first dragon rider in more than a century. The second, which leads to a TitleDrop, is Quentyn Martell releasing Rhaegal and Viserion in a failed attempt to tame them, which ends up [[ManOnFire roasting him to death]].
-->'''Barristan Selmy:''' Not all men are meant to dance with dragons.

!Examples:

[[folder:Anime and Manga]]
* ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'': Many people assume that it's named after Ichigo's bleached-looking bright orange hair, but WordOfGod states that the word 'bleach' is meant to be evocative of the color white, which contrasts with the color black, which is the main color of the main characters' uniforms. So the title refers to the complementary color to their uniforms just to make it more interesting and artistic. [[spoiler: The final arc begins to reveal just how important this theme actually is to the story as a whole; as it turns out, the title may look innocuous but it's actually highly significant.]]
* ''Anime/{{Charlotte}}'': None of the main characters share the name with the series. The name actually comes from [[spoiler: the comet that flies past Earth every 75 years trailing dust that falls onto Earth. This dust is what gives children their powers.]]

[[folder:Film – Animated]]

[[folder:Film – Live-Action]]

* ''{{Film/Fargo}}:'' Only the first scene, where Jerry hires Gaear and Carl, is set in the titular town. The main settings are Brainerd and Minneapolis.

* ''Film/TheProwler1951'': The actual prowler only appears in the opening scene of the film. Webb later uses the prowler's existence to justify his shooting of John, but in no way is the prowler ever the main focus.

* The ''{{Film/Subspecies}}'' series is named after a small race of creatures who barely factor into the movies.

* ''Literature/{{Discworld}}''

** The very first serial of the show is usually marketed under the title [[Recap/DoctorWhoS1E1AnUnearthlyChild "An Unearthly Child"]]. While this is the title of the first episode of the serial and fits it very well, it has practically no relation to the later three episodes aside from the titular character (Susan) being present. As such, some fans insist on referring to the serial as a whole as "100,000 B.C." instead, and a few think the serial should be considered two separate stories.
** [[Recap/DoctorWhoS33E6TheBellsOfSaintJohn "The Bells of Saint John"]]: The title refers to a throwaway line about the TARDIS phone and has nothing to do with the Evil Wi-Fi plot at all.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'' was originally just ''Warhammer'' RecycledInSpace, but now the franchises are noticeably different. Warhammers are still used, but just by certain characters of a faction or two. "40,000" refers to the whole 41st Millennium, as the in-universe present year is actually 40,999 AD (and has been the 'present' for all editions of the game). As of 8th edition it isn't even the 41st millennium anymore, although thanks to TimeyWimeyBall it's a bit uncertain what the new date actually is.

* ''VisualNovel/HigurashiWhenTheyCry'' features "When the Cicadas Cry". While cicadas aren't completely irrelevant (their chirping is used as atmospheric background music during some scenes and they are often mentioned as a recurring motif), the true meaning of the title is a play on words - the Japanese word for "cicadas" is similar to the Japanese word for "murderer".

[[folder:Webcomics]]

** "Heat Signature" begins with Finn and Jake going to Marceline's house to show her the titled movie, but the episode quickly deviates from that and becomes about Marceline tricking Finn and Jake into thinking they are vampires. Only at the end of the episode do they actually watch ''Heat Signature''.

* ''WesternAnimation/RickAndMorty'': "The Ricklantis Mixup" has ''nothing'' to do with the duo's adventure to the lost city of Main/{{Atlantis}}. It's an episode about the [[PlanetOfSteves Citadel of Ricks]].

* Music/TheBeatles' "Hey Bulldog" was originally called "Hey Bullfrog", but it was changed because Music/PaulMcCartney started barking spontaneously during the recording. Music/JohnLennon changed it to "Bulldog" on the fly so that it made sense in context, and the title then had to change to match the lyric.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer}}'' is named after Sigmar's hammer Ghal Maraz (Skull-splitter), but it sees relatively little use in the fluff, being one weapon among hundreds used by one faction among a dozen.

* In the Creator/{{Troma}} movie ''Plutonium Baby'', the titular plutonium baby doesn't appear until right at the end.

* The titular bees in ''Film/TheSpiritOfTheBeehive'' are only featured in one scene, though the design and lighting of the manor house carries a [[RuleOfSymbolism beehive motif]].

* ''Film/TheRoom'': The action doesn't all happen in one room, and there's nothing special about Johnny's living or bedroom, or about any other rooms featured in the movie. According to WordOfGod, it refers a person's HappyPlace...which doesn't factor in the film at all.

* Allegedly the reason the Goo Goo Dolls' "Iris" is named that is because of the line in the chorus "And I don't want the world to see me," because you see with your eyes...and the iris is part of the eye.

* ''Film/GreenZone'' is named after the term commonly used to refer to the area in Baghdad that was the governmental center of the Coalition Provisional Authority after the invasion of Iraq. It's referenced in the film, but most of it takes place outside of it, and it doesn't play a particularly important role in the plot.

A subtrope of NeverTrustATitle. Sister trope of DeceptivelySillyTitle. Compare NonIndicativeName. May be a consequence of ArtifactTitle. Can be used to avoid a SpoilerTitle.

* ''Film/TheRoom'': The action doesn't all happen in one room, and there's nothing special about Johnny's living or bedroom, or about any other rooms featured in the movie.

* It is not even clear what ''Film/TheSuckers'' is supposed to refer to. Presumably it is the employees of the modelling agency and Jeff for falling into Vandemeer's trap, with secondary sexual innuendo meaning. However, neither of these interpretations has much to do with film's HuntingTheMostDangerousGame plot.

* ''{{Film/Fargo}}:'' only the first scene, where Jerry hires Gaear and Carl, is set in the titular town. The main settings are Brainerd and Minneapolis.