cost vs pay the penalty

cost

verb
  • To require to be borne or suffered; to cause. 

  • To cause something to be lost; to cause the expenditure or relinquishment of. 

  • To calculate or estimate a price. 

  • To incur a charge of; to require payment of a (specified) price. 

noun
  • Quality; condition; property; value; worth; a wont or habit; disposition; nature; kind; characteristic. 

  • A negative consequence or loss that occurs or is required to occur. 

  • Amount of money, time, etc. that is required or used. 

  • A cottise. 

pay the penalty

verb
  • To incur negative consequences of one's deeds; to suffer as a result of some choice. 

How often have the words cost and pay the penalty occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )