Example sentences of "could not [verb] [prep] be [adj] " in BNC.
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| 1 | From this position he could not expect to be prominent going to the first bend , the clubhouse turn , and Shoemaker held him back in about eighth place , some four horses out from the rails , as the runners came past the stands . |
| 2 | ‘ Whereas the police , no doubt , would continue to draft in innumerable squads of men to trample the landscape and inspect the ground , and exude such an aura of busyness and continuous reorganisation that even the most cynical observer could not fail to be impressed . ’ |
| 3 | Perhaps she never realized quite how deep-seated was this need , but shop , as well as factory staff , could not fail to be impressed at the way both she and Bernard always knew their names , asked with interest about their home life and would always try and help if there was a problem by sending taxis , flowers , hot meals or whatever the crisis demanded . |
| 4 | It could not fail to be excellent in your hands , and quite put Mr Thackeray in the shade . |
| 5 | The young man , whose name was Merbury , was eager and inexperienced , and took it for granted , as an honest man well might , that his story of complete and shattering victory , of the capture of so many of the active nobility of Scotland , and of a bright lustre added to the name of Percy and of England could not fail to be pleasing to his sovereign . |
| 6 | The technical officer could not fail to be conscious of the lethal potential of an electrical discharge from the platform . |
| 7 | As soon as it had been fired from the Simonova the pod would have started to broadcast a signal and , since the crew of the survey ship could not fail to be aware that a pod had been discharged , and that it was occupied , he supposed that his descent had been tracked and that someone at least knew where he was to be found . |
| 8 | If they both were of the same logical type , then we could not hope to be able to clarify the distinction between numerical and species identity and the possibility of order in space or time . |
| 9 | FitzAlan was holding her as if he would make her part of himself , as if he could not bear to be separate from her . |
| 10 | She could hear the beating of his heart and she closed her eyes , thankful for his presence for she could not bear to be alone , not now , not yet . |
| 11 | He could not want to be kind , could not love the tarnished and ruined thing Sally-Anne Tunstall was , but she looked at him all the same . |
| 12 | ‘ The national interest ’ was also a rebuff to congressmen , who could not afford to be critical of it , even when they already knew it as grounds to keep them in the dark . |
| 13 | Javier de la Puerta , chief spokesman for the World Fair , said the recent blows to ETA were ‘ very good news ’ but added that Expo organisers could not afford to be complacent . |
| 14 | I thought we 'd been getting on pretty well but as Father 's Day approached , Joe made it clear that I could n't hope to be any more than just second best |
| 15 | He backed away from her in mock fear , but he was still laughing at her and though she meant every word , she could n't continue to be angry with him . |
| 16 | He could n't admit to being afraid of a breath of air . |
| 17 | I could n't bear to be married if I had n't … ‘ |
| 18 | She could n't pretend to be sophisticated and flippant and terribly cool any more . |
| 19 | But no , but I ca n't could n't afford to be rude to him , I 've only just joined the choir . |
| 20 | But she could n't afford to be angry — or to offend him again , she realised , and took a deep and calming breath . |
| 21 | I could n't wait to be fourteen and be free of the place . |