In X than in Y

Question

(1) Socialism is more popular in Europe than in the United States.
(2) Swimming is more dangerous in the river than in the pool.
To me the sentence (1) sounds natural but the sentence (2) sounds somehow unnatural.
I can't explain reasons why I feel the sentence (2) awkward, however.
Could anyone give me any comment on this?

Nona the brit · Accepted Answer

It sounds ok really , but might feel more natural as:

It is more dangerous to swim in the river than in the pool.

It is safer to swim in the pool than the river.

I think it is the 'swimming is more dangerous' that sounds a little odd, but I don't think it is actually incorrect.

Paco2004 · Answer

Hi nona

Thank you for the quick reply. I'm the person who posted the original question. I registered just now.

"It is safer to swim in the pool than in the river" would be the best, though it sounds a bit too formal. Speaking about the sentence I questioned, I began to feel that the problem lies in the sentence structure of "Swimming is dangerous in the river (or the pool)". "Swimming in the river is dangerous" sounds natural, but the separation of "in the river" from the verbal noun "swimming" makes it someway odd. What do you feel when you hear "Swimming in the pool is safer than in the river"? Does it sound more natural?

paco2004

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