～ては居(い)られないCan't afford to, Unable to

てはいられない is a grammar pattern which consists of the conjunction-particle て, は, and the negated-potential form of the る-Verb いる 'to be'. Common translations include 'to be unable to (A)', and 'cannot afford to (A)'. The literal meaning of 'to not be able to be with (A)' just reflects the impossibility of the word that this structure is attached to.

This structure is almost exclusively seen with verbs, but may occasionally be seen with い-Adjectives, な-Adjectives or nouns as well.

The verb that てはいられない is connected to is often considered to be something that cannot continue on due to either some time-based or feeling-based limitation. In this way, it regularly has the nuance of '(A) cannot continue due to (B)', with the reason of (B) mentioned in another part of the sentence.

When appearing with い-Adjectives, な-Adjectives or nouns, the nuance will change slightly, and simply reflects the meaning of いられない itself in conveying that (A) 'cannot be', or is 'impossible' in some way. As always, ては will be replaced by では in the case of nouns and な-Adjectives.