conte; short story; tale
Refers to the French literary genre of short, often fantastical or moral tales. This sense is less common in everyday Japanese and may be encountered in literary or academic contexts.
from French
The two of them performed a funny sketch on stage.
In French literature class, we read a conte by Maupassant.
comedy sketch; skit
The most common modern meaning in Japanese: a short, humorous performance piece, often seen on TV variety shows or in live comedy. Derived from the French word but semantically shifted.
That comedian's skits are funny.
I watched a popular comedy sketch show on TV.
The rookie duo showcased a sketch they wrote themselves.
It was decided that I would do a sketch with a senior comedian.
寸劇 is a general short play or skit that need not be comedic, whereas コント specifically implies humor and is associated with TV and stage comedy.
漫才 is fast-paced two-person dialogue comedy, while コント is a short skit-style comedy often involving props and a set scene.
Borrowed from French 'conte' (tale, short story). In Japanese, the meaning shifted to primarily denote a short comedy sketch, a semantic change not present in the original French.