use of more (adv) with 'than

Question

We say:

I am more intelligent than you.

I earn more than you do.

I like you more than your brother.

Can we say:

You show devotion to me more than him.

I feel there has to be the preposition 'to' before 'him' and the adverb 'more' should be before the noun 'devotion'; as in

You show more devotion to me than to him.

Am I on right lines? If not, then is the following correct?

You show devotion to me more than him. [And what I mean to say by this sentence is: both 'me' and 'him' are the receivers of 'devotion' that 'You' show.]

Answer 1

The short answer is yes.

There is a subtle distinction between:

You show more devotion to me than (to) him
and
You show devotion to me more than (to) him.

The first sentence refers to more devotion (a greater amount); the second implies more often. The use of the preposition to is optional. In colloquial speech it would often be omitted.

It's clear that him is the recipient of the devotion and not the giver. Otherwise you would have to write:

You show more devotion to me than he does.
or
You show devotion to me more than he does.