てばかりはいられない

Meaning & usage

Cannot just; cannot always; cannot just keep ~ing; cannot spend time just ~ing; cannot waste time just ~ing | A phrase representing the idea that someone cannot just keep doing something or waste time being consumed by some emotion.

Example sentences 9

1. やっと長年の夢であったマイホーム手に入れたが、喜んでばかりはいられない。これから大きなローンを返していかなければならないのだ。

   I finally own a house, which I have hoped to do for years, but I can't remain excited for long. Now I have a huge loan to repay.

2. リストラのショックからまだ完全に立ち直ったわけじゃないけど、いつまでも落ち込んでばかりもいられない。すぐに仕事探しを始めなければ。

   I haven't fully recovered from the shock of being laid off, but I cannot waste my time just feeling depressed. I have to start looking for a job right away.

3. 人の成功に感心ばかりしてはいられない。我々ももっと頑張らなければ。

   We can't just sit around being impressed by someone else's success. We have to work harder, too.

4. 周りの人が助けてくれるからと言って、いつまでも人にばかり頼ってはいられない。

   Just because the people around me have helped me out in the past, I can't depend on others endlessly.

5. 希望の学校に入れなかったからと言って、挫けてばかりはいられない。

   I just can't let it get me down because I didn't get into the school I wanted.

6. 確かにこれは深刻な事態だが、議論ばかりしてはいられない。

   Indeed, this is a serious situation, but we cannot just keep discussing it.

7. 退職して悠々自適の生活ができるようになったが、家にばかりこもってもいられないのでボランティアの仕事を始めた。

   Now that I'm retired I can live as I like, but I just can't stay at home, so I've begun to do volunteer work.

8. 過去の業績に安住してばかりはいられない。

   We just cannot be content with our past performance.

9. 障害の原因ばかり考えてもいられない。早急に失われたデータを回復する必要がある。

   We can't just keep thinking about what caused the trouble. We have to recover the lost data immediately.