Follow TV Tropes

Following

Practical Joke

Go To

Index about pranks.

Compare Stock Jokes, Booby Trap.

Contrast Deadly Prank.


Tropes

  • All Just a Prank: A major plot ends up to be a practical joke.
  • Banana Peel: Someone slips on a banana peel and gets hurt.
  • Banana in the Tailpipe: Blowing up a car's engine by sticking something in the tailpipe.
  • Booby Trap: Can range from slapstick comedy as seen in the Home Alone movies, to downright lethal as seen in the climax of Skyfall (also compare that trope).
  • Bucket Booby-Trap: Placing a bucket filled with water (or any sort of liquid, depending on the character) atop the edge of a door slightly ajar, then tricking some unwitting schmuck to open the door. Subverted if the intended target closes the door before re-opening, therefore spilling the bucket and rendering the prank useless.
  • Bunny Ears Picture Prank: During a group photo, one person raises their index and middle finger behind another person's head to give them bunny ears.
  • Burning Bag of Poop: Putting feces in a paper bag, set it alight, and watch some volunteer come over and stomp the fire out.
  • Candid Camera Prank: Setting up a secret camera, microphone, etc. to record the victim without their foreknowledge for entertainment purposes.
  • Cash Lure: The stray 10-dollar note on the pavement sure looks tempting, especially to some unfortunate schmuck who happens to be passing by and trying to pick it up.
  • Clock Tampering: What time is it?
  • Covered in Gunge: Someone gets covered in slime.
  • Deadly Prank: Practical jokes are fun until someone gets hurt.
  • Ding-Dong-Ditch Distraction: Ringing the doorbell and running away before someone answers.
  • Egging: Throwing eggs at other people's houses.
  • Electric Joybuzzer: How about a handshake?
  • Explosive Cigar: You offer someone a cigar, but after it's lit, it makes a small explosion.
  • Eyepiece Prank: You trick someone into looking through an eyepiece that leaves a marking around their eye or eyes.
  • Fire-Breathing Diner: Making someone eat hot, spicy food so they end up breathing fire.
  • Friendly Scheming
  • Halloween Trickery: On Halloween, people do mischievous things like pull pranks on others
  • I Ate WHAT?!: Tricking someone into eating something disgusting.
  • It's a Costume Party, I Swear!: Misleading a character into wearing a costume to a non-costume party.
  • "Kick Me" Prank: A prank where you put a sign on someone's back that says "Kick Me" or something similar.
  • Kneel, Push, Trip
  • Laxative Prank: A prank where you trick someone into consuming a laxative.
  • Nominated as a Prank
  • Overturned Outhouse: Tipping over outhouses and port-a-potties as a joke.
  • Pants-Pulling Prank: A prank where you pull down someone's pants (pulling down the underwear as well is optional).
  • Pie in the Face: Someone gets hit in the face with a pie.
  • Powder Gag: Powder is scattered or exploded all over the victim (and usually the room), entirely coating them.
  • Prank Call: A prank where you harass someone over the phone by tricking them into saying something ridiculous.
  • Prank Date: Asking someone out just to humiliate them.
  • Prank Gone Too Far: It isn't a Deadly Prank, but it does cross a line to the point where the mark isn't laughing.
  • Prank Injuries: Someone uses prank items to imitate horrifying injuries.
  • Prank Punishment: A punishment in the form of a practical joke.
  • Pranking Montage: A montage that shows multiple pranks being pulled.
  • The Prankster: What the page is all about. The master of practical jokes.
  • Pulling the Rug Out: With someone standing on it, of course.
  • Running into the Window: One that is obviously as tall as a person, whose frame is out of sight enough for someone to bump into.
  • Scary Surprise Party: A scary prank turns out to be a... surprise party. Like what the title states.
  • Screamer Prank: Scaring the daylights out of someone with a video containing a Jump Scare.
  • Soda Can Shakeup: Step 1). Give a can of soda a good shake. Step 2). Offer it to some poor sucker. Step 3). Showtime!
  • Stink Bomb: It's like a smoke grenade made of farts and leftover cauliflower cheese.
  • Squirting Flower Gag: tricking a victim into smelling a fake flower, that squirts water in their face when they try.
  • Thumbtack on the Chair: Putting a thumbtack on a chair before someone sits on it.
  • Tied-Together-Shoelace Trip: Tying a person's shoelaces together when they aren't looking so that they'll trip and fall over as soon as they try to walk.
  • Toilet Paper Prank: Wrapping toilet paper around stuff.
  • Trip Trap: Stretching a rope across a path to trip someone up.
  • Underwear Flag: Someone puts underwear on a flagpole, usually for laughs at the undie owner's expense.
  • Unraveled Entanglement
  • Unscrewed Salt Shaker: Loosening the top of a salt shaker so that the next person to use it ends up spilling out all the salt in the container.
  • Wacky Fratboy Hijinx: Really, really typical in high school dramas. But hey, college frats, right?
  • Warm Water Whiz: Putting a sleeping person's hand in warm water in order to make them wet themselves.
  • "Wash Me" Graffiti
  • Wedgie: Hurting someone by pulling up the back of their underwear (or the front, if it's a Melvin).
  • Whoopee Cushion: A small balloon-like object that you inflate and put where someone will sit on it, whereupon the object will make it sound like the person farted.

 
Feedback

Video Example(s):

Top

Kripke's Helium Prank

While Sheldon is on the radio with NPR, Kripke fills his office with helium, causing his voice to become increasing squeaky. Even worse, Kripke has the entire cafeteria, including Sheldon's friends, hear the broadcast.

How well does it match the trope?

5 (15 votes)

Example of:

Main / HeliumSpeech

Media sources:

Report