A dictionary of Confusable Phrases: More Than 10,000 Idioms and Collocations

count the cost • count the pennies
count the cost—estimate the advantages and disadvantages
of an undertaking: Riding out, they didn’t count the cost;
they had one end in view — to serve their king.
count the pennies —(also: count pennies) calculate costs care-
fully; be economical: That [dinner] was very expensive too. I
wasn’t in the mood to count the pennies.
country house • town house
country house —(also: country-seat) a mansion in the country;
the residence of a country nobleman: The floor was carpeted
and the impression was one of a small library in a rather run-
down country house.
Note: 
The expression does not correlate in meaning with the
phrase house in the country— a house situated in the country-
side: They decided to take their savings and buy a house in
the country so they could have a small garden.
town house —(also: terraced house) one of a row of usually
similar houses sharing side walls: Many of us have made the
life changing decision to live in Cyprus — in a town house or
in one of the studio apartments.
couple of something • pair of something
couple of something —
1
. is used of a small approximate num-
ber of smth.: Sometimes he would go to one of the call-houses
and spend a couple of hours with one of the women. 2. is
used to indicate two items that do not belong together as a
set: They had ensconced themselves comfortably in a couple
of chairs in the billiard room.
pair of something —is usually applied to items that occur in
groups of two: The constable took out a pair of bicycle clips,
which he adjusted round his ankles.
court shoes (UK) • court shoes (U.S.)
court shoes (UK)—women’s shoes with a heel, used as a com-
ponent of formal wear at evening parties, etc.: The Countess
of Wessex, wearing unusual Tyrolean-style headwear, wobbled
visibly too in her court shoes.
court shoes (U.S.)—athletic shoes used for sports played on
an indoor court: My father is an avid tennis player who has
worn his court shoes to death.