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"Barley," said in a game.
When we were kids in the early sixties and playing "Kick the Can," on the Rec., we used to say, "Barley" when we got back to the tin. This meant that you could not be tigged,( "Tig" to tap on the body and that person thereby being caught.) For years I had wondered why we said, "Barley." Why such a strange word? It was only after watching, " The Pirates of the Carribean" that I realized the word's meaning, for in that film one of the characters said,"Parley," which meant that they had entered into a truce and therefore could not be harmed. Barley is a corruption of this word. The modern definition is, "to hold an informal conference with an enemy under a truce, as between active hostilities," exactly the situation in the games.
How come we had got hold of such a word? It was used in all games where getting back to base without being caught meant that you were untouchable.

Passed down the generations?

I don't remember it being said when I was a girl.

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Mel

Searching for lost relatives? Win the Lottery!

I remember that being said--"ha ha I'm barley you can't touch me".

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Gloria

I'd be dangerous with a brain.

When we said it, we had to put our thumbs up at the same time

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Maureen
If you can't fight, wear a big 'at

Barley is a corruption of Parley which is a corruption of Parlez. We have a lot of French roots to our language, as we all know...just another instance of how that language is embedded in English.