barley, v. — Green’s Dictionary of Slang

barley v.

[? naut. belay; stop; note dial. barley! a call for a temporary truce in wrestling, linked by EDD to Fr. bailler, to give, to grant, to yield over; Moore (2023) suggests parley, ‘a meeting between two opposite sides in a dispute’]

(Aus.) to stop doing something when asked.

1918		Ross’s Mthly (Melbourne) Nov. 21: Ross’s Satirical Dictionary—Barley—what the belligernts ought to say.
1967		‘Whisper All Aussie Dict.’ in Kings Cross Whisper (Sydney) xxxii 6/1: barley: Desist from doing something at the request of another.
1971		F. Hardy Outcasts of Foolgarah 91: ‘Hey, barley,’ the Red Dean Cautioned [...] don’t let us create a big stink.
1992		Canberra Times (ACT) 27 Dec. 32: You are in the middle of a game, but something intervenes — a quick trip to the loo [...] a dropped chewy — and you call ‘barley’. Immediately all the rules are suspended and trhe status quo is meticulously upheld untila resumption is called.
2017		R. Mann Pentridge 77: ‘I’m not breaking rocks [...] I cried barley on that’.