El retal no parece nuevo que digamos.

In Spain, retal usually means a scrap, offcut, or remnant of fabric or other material. It is a masculine noun, which is why the sentence has el retal and nuevo, not la retal or nueva.

So if the meaning has already been given to you, the important grammar point is that retal is grammatically masculine singular.

Both are possible, but they mean slightly different things.

• El retal = the scrap / the piece of scrap
• Un retal = a scrap / a piece of scrap

The sentence uses el because it is referring to a specific scrap that the speaker and listener already have in mind.

Because parecer means to seem or to look.

• El retal parece nuevo = The scrap seems/looks new
• El retal es nuevo = The scrap is new
• El retal está nuevo = The scrap is like new / still in very good condition

So parece is used because the speaker is talking about appearance or impression, not stating a fact directly.

Because nuevo agrees with retal, and retal is masculine singular.

In Spanish, adjectives usually agree in gender and number with the noun they describe:

• el retal nuevo
• la tela nueva
• los retales nuevos

Even though nuevo comes after parece, it still matches the subject el retal.

Que digamos is a very common idiomatic expression. In a sentence like this, it means something like:

• exactly
• really
• by any means
• so to speak, depending on context

Here, no parece nuevo que digamos means roughly:

• It doesn’t exactly look new
• It doesn’t look especially new
• It’s not what you’d call new

So que digamos adds a slightly ironic or understated tone. It often appears after a negative statement.

It is best to learn it as a fixed expression.

Grammatically, digamos is the present subjunctive of decir in the nosotros form, but in this phrase you usually do not translate it word for word. Native speakers use que digamos as an idiomatic comment on what was just said.

So although it comes from the verb decir, in practice you should treat no ... que digamos as a chunk meaning something like:

• not exactly
• not really
• not what you’d call ...

Because this expression comes from a kind of elliptical formula, where the subjunctive gives a more tentative or formulaic sense, similar to let’s say.

But for a learner, the key point is this:

• Yes, digamos is the present subjunctive
• In que digamos, it works as part of an idiomatic set phrase
• You usually do not need to analyze it every time you see it

So this is one of those cases where memorizing the whole expression is more useful than trying to build it from scratch.

They are similar, but not identical.

• No parece muy nuevo = It doesn’t seem very new
• No parece nuevo que digamos = It doesn’t exactly seem new

The version with que digamos sounds a bit more idiomatic and often slightly more expressive, ironic, or understated. It suggests something like: calling it new would be a stretch.

So que digamos adds nuance, not just information.

Yes, very often. It is a productive colloquial pattern.

Examples:

• No es barato que digamos.
  It’s not exactly cheap.

• No estaba limpio que digamos.
  It wasn’t exactly clean.

• No fue un éxito que digamos.
  It wasn’t exactly a success.

This pattern is especially common after no.

No parece muy nuevo is absolutely normal and probably more straightforward for a learner.

But no parece nuevo que digamos is also natural, especially in spoken or informal written Spanish, and it has a more idiomatic tone.

Compare:

• No parece muy nuevo = neutral, direct
• No parece nuevo que digamos = more colloquial, more nuanced, often a bit dry or understated

So the version in your sentence is not just about degree; it also gives the sentence some personality.

The sentence is negative because of no:

• El retal no parece nuevo...

The phrase que digamos does not create the negation by itself. Instead, it usually appears inside a negative context and reinforces or shades that negative idea.

So the core statement is:

• El retal no parece nuevo = The scrap doesn’t seem new

Then que digamos adds the nuance:

• El retal no parece nuevo que digamos = The scrap doesn’t exactly seem new

Yes, but it sounds more formal, more analytical, and less natural in everyday conversation.

Compare:

• El retal no parece nuevo. = natural, common
• El retal parece no ser nuevo. = grammatically correct, but more formal or literary

And if you add que digamos, the more natural version is the original one:

• El retal no parece nuevo que digamos.

Usually, no commas are necessary in a sentence like this:

• El retal no parece nuevo que digamos.

Since que digamos is closely attached to the adjective phrase, it is often written without commas.

That said, punctuation can vary a little for rhythm or style, especially in informal writing, but the version without commas is completely normal.

Yes. Que digamos is a normal and recognizable colloquial expression in Spain. Learners will hear it in everyday speech and see it in informal writing.

It is not extremely formal, and it often carries a conversational tone. So it is useful to understand, even if you do not use it right away yourself.

A good learner takeaway is:

• no + statement + que digamos often means not exactly / not really / not what you’d call ...