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You don't say is a response that can be used, when someone states something that is insanely obvious, and you cannot think of any other legitimate response to say.
The movie had a big band in it (Spike Jones?) and one of the musicians answers a phone that rings (I think the phone was at his feet - this must have been from 1935-45) and he says, "You don't say!", very loudly and with great projection, 3 or four times before hanging up.
The Macmillan dictionary tells you the idiom “You don’t say” has contradictory meanings. used to express surprise. used to express lack of surprise. This is because you can say “You don’t say that, do you?” (It’s not an imperative.) in the both situations.
You only need one verb in the past tense (did in this case) to have your entire sentence on the past. As other commenter said, it's 'he didn't say'. Since you already established that you are using past tense with 'didn't', you don't have to use another past tense word. 137K subscribers in the grammar community.
The phrase “you don’t say” is an idiomatic expression used to convey surprise or astonishment but it can be also used sarcastically in response to an obvious statement.
Aug 29, 2004 · No. 1: "He didn't say." SS. In my experience, the phrase is most often used ironically and means something like 'you have just stated the obvious.' You don't say - the meaning and origin of this phrase.
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Aug 29, 2004 · SS. : I understand "You don't say!" to mean the same thing as "You're kidding!" It expresses astonishment. Benny Hill and his female co-conspirator are at home, with one of them (I forget which) on the telephone.