Level 5 · Advanced
Can't afford it, can't stand it: 不起 / 不了
Verb + 不起 / 不了（liǎo）
Some potential complements are so common they've become words of their own. V不起 means "can't afford (to)": 买不起 "can't afford to buy", 吃不起 "can't afford to eat (there)". V不了 (liǎo!) means "physically can't manage": 受不了 "can't stand it", 吃不了 "can't finish (the food)".
Add the time-critical pair 来得及/来不及 ("there's still time / too late") and you have the survival kit. One booby trap: 看不起 doesn't mean "can't see" — it means "to look down on." "Can't see" is 看不见.
Examples
这个包太贵了，我买不起。
這個包太貴了，我買不起。
zhè ge bāo tài guì le wǒ mǎi bù qǐ
This bag is too expensive — I can't afford it.
快点，我们要来不及了！
快點，我們要來不及了！
kuài diǎn wǒ men yào lái bu jí le
Hurry up — we're going to be late!
这么吵，我真的受不了了。
這麼吵，我真的受不了了。
zhè me chǎo wǒ zhēn de shòu bù liǎo le
This noise — I really can't take it anymore.
菜太多了，我们吃不了。
菜太多了，我們吃不了。
cài tài duō le wǒ men chī bù liǎo
There's too much food — we can't finish it.
Common mistakes
✗ 太远了，我看不起。
✓ 太远了，我看不见。
看不起 means "to look down on someone." For "can't see," use 看不见.
Related grammar points
See it in a story
Read this pattern in context: Can't Take It Anymore (Part 1) · The Picnic That Almost Wasn't (Part 1) — free graded stories with tap-to-reveal pinyin and translations.
