They couldn't afford to pay the bills.

他们付不起账。

《柯林斯英汉双解大词典》

She could well afford to pay for it herself.

她自己完全买得起。

《牛津词典》

What is the absolute maximum you can afford to pay?

你最多能出多少钱？

《牛津词典》

But he cannot afford to pay for the three-year distance-learning qualification program offered by the government.

VOA: standard.2010.02.25

in such a way that after the rates were raised, they likely couldn't afford to pay the mortgage anymore or they'd be under great stress in trying to do so.

这种“引逗利率，以至于到后来他们没有能力偿还贷款,或者为了还贷给生活造成巨大压力。

耶鲁公开课 - 金融市场课程节选

But when you look at the bill, it is very expensive and you can't afford to pay that.

但当你看见账单时，你才发现这太贵了，你负担不起。

I can 课堂 - SpeakingMax英语口语达人

Because they can afford to pay the gatekeeper a hefty fee for recommending the product.

FORBES: International Campaign to Eliminate Pension Consultant Abuses (November 2, 2004 )

First, businesses can afford to pay higher interest rates when they are in faster growing economies.

FORBES: Interest Rates Are What Unite Economics And Finance

Greece could choose to pay back more-or-less what it thought it could afford to pay back.

BBC: Is a Greek default so bad for Greece?