anecdote; short comic story
A brief, often humorous story or anecdote. Can be a standalone tale or a short rakugo-style piece. The two senses overlap significantly in modern usage.
He told a short comic story before the meeting to lighten the mood.
This book contains many interesting anecdotes from the Edo period.
小話 is a brief, often humorous tale meant to entertain, whereas 逸話 carries the sense of a true, noteworthy story about a specific person.
小話 is a short anecdote or brief story told for entertainment, while 小ネタ (in its joke sense) is a quick one-liner or gag rather than a full narrative.
amorous anecdote; risqué short story
Standard kanji spelling; the most common written form.
Alternate kanji spelling using 咄, which specifically means 'comic story' or 'anecdote'.
Alternate kanji spelling using 噺, a variant of 咄 with the same meaning.
Compound of 小 (small, short) and 話 (story, talk). The kanji 咄 and 噺 are specifically associated with comic or witty stories.