In all three synoptic Gospels, Jesus is asked by Pontius Pilate if He is king of the Jews, and He responds (KJV), “Thou sayest it” (though Matthew for some reason does not supply the word “it” the way that Mark and Luke do). See Matthew 27:11, Mark 15:2, and Luke 23:3. This is generally understood as being an affirmative answer by Jesus, albeit more oblique than a simple yes.
And one day this summer, after hearing the phrase “You said it!” in some context, I wondered: Is there any connection between the two? In particular, does the English phrase have New Testament roots? After all, the two phrases are really identical, and I like to think that there was greater enough Bible literacy back in the day that people might have gotten the reference in the newly-minted slang.
Nice idea, I still think — but sadly I’ve found no evidence for it. Here’s what Google’s AI said:
AI Overview
The phrase “you said it” is an American colloquialism, likely originating in the early 20th century, that means “you’re right” or “you’re absolutely correct.” It’s used to express emphatic agreement with something just said. The phrase gained popularity through its use in the Little Rascals movies, according to a Reddit thread, and is often associated with an older generation today.
Elaboration:
“You said it” is an idiom that functions as a strong expression of agreement. It emphasizes the speaker’s complete concurrence with the previous statement.
While the exact origin is difficult to pinpoint, it is considered an Americanism and is likely a colloquialism that emerged in the early 20th century.
The phrase was popularized by its frequent use in the Little Rascals films, which also popularized other phrases like “and how!”.
It’s often used as a standalone response to a statement, but can also be incorporated into a longer sentence for emphasis.