Former President Donald J. Trump took the stand in his own defense on Thursday in the trial of E. Jean Carroll’s defamation lawsuit against him, a civil case that grew out of her accusation that he raped her in a department store dressing room in the mid-1990s.

His testimony, after days of anticipation, lasted less than five minutes.

“Defense calls President Donald Trump,” Alina Habba, his lead lawyer, told the court.

She asked the former president whether he stood by his remarks in a deposition in which he had called Ms. Carroll a liar.

“One hundred percent, yes,” Mr. Trump said. “She said something I considered a false accusation.”

Mr. Trump’s brief appearance came after much debate before the trial over whether Judge Lewis A. Kaplan should ensure Mr. Trump did not stray from the sole issue in the case — damages — as he frequently does in public statements. Ms. Carroll’s lawyer, Roberta A. Kaplan, had written to the judge, saying Trump might see a political benefit “from intentionally turning this trial into a circus.”