How to combine progressive form and potential form?


I can't really think of a sensible context to be honest. Let's say I want to
say that I can eat right now but I don't know for how long I'll be able to, so
I use the progressive form.

Is there a difference in the meaning between these forms:

食べていられる

食べられている

As for ことができる construction, which verb should be conjugated to progressive in
such case?




> Is there a difference in the meaning between these forms:
>
> 食べていられる
>
> 食べられている

I would like to ask you, do you mean by "progressive" to mean "to keep
eating"?

In that case, the upper 食べていられる would be good, though it a bit sounds without
any limit IMO.

The lower would sound to Japanese as either

1 the honorific expression

or

2 the passive expression

IMO, which would fall would depend on the prior or latter texts.

Probably another "form" of the "progressive style" would be,

食べ続｛つづけ｝ける事｛こと｝ができる, meaning, to keep eating.




  * 「食べていられる」 -- The progressive 「食べている」 ("be eating") is given the potential modality. The resulting expression is parallel to "be able to be eating" or "can be eating". Example:

> こんな状況でよく **食べていられる** な。 "How **can** you **be eating** in a situation like
> this?"

  * 「食べられている」 -- The potential 「食べられる」 ("be able to eat" or "can eat") is given the progressive aspect. The result is parallel to" be being able to eat". Example:

> 体調がよくなったので、今はちゃんと **食べられている** 。
>
> "My health has improved, so I **am being able to eat** well right now. "
> (Awkward, admittedly, but illustrates the point, hopefully.)

There are in fact multiple possible readings (three, as far as I can tell) for
the stem 「食べられ」 in 「食べられている」, including passive and honorific, and potential
is one of them.

