Adding to the stress is the complexity of the grammar, especially the far-from-perfect spelling system hellish past tense riddled with irregularities.

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Having defied the distraction of a match-fixing scandal at home and beaten hosts Germany in a tense semifinal, the Italians held their nerve once again to convert five perfect penalties and win the World Cup for the fourth time.

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But to many, many others the explorer's courage, optimism and enthusiasm were the perfect distraction from a world still bruised by World War II and nervously watching the increasingly tense standoff between the United States and Soviet Union.

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