Example sentences of "[noun sg] can [not/n't] afford to [be] " in BNC.
Next page| No | Sentence |
|---|---|
| 1 | But with the tax collectors anxious to get their hands on every ha'penny , the Chancellor can not afford to be generous . |
| 2 | Nevertheless , sport can not afford to be soft on those who cause the problems — whether it is athletes who , as drug users , habitually cheat , or the spectators who take the law into their own hands and invade football pitches . |
| 3 | The international community can not afford to be complacent , assuming that if the United Nations peacekeeping force is there that everything will go according to plan . |
| 4 | Reforming officials within both the prison system and the criminal justice process can not afford to be merely reactive . |
| 5 | To adapt to the increasing complexities of modern business life , an organisation can not afford to be a sluggish bureaucracy . |