In the following sentence, choose the option that best improves the bracketed part: “The joy of (cook) a meal with freshly grown herbs was boundless.” If no improvement is needed, select “no improvement”.

Introduction:
This sentence improvement question tests the correct use of verb forms after prepositions and nouns like joy of, habit of, interest in, and so on. In English, when a verb follows a preposition such as of, in, on, or for, the verb typically appears in the gerund form, that is the ing form used as a noun. The sentence describes the happiness someone feels when preparing a meal with fresh herbs, so the grammar must reflect this standard pattern.

Given Data / Assumptions:

- Original text: The joy of (cook) a meal with freshly grown herbs was boundless. - The bracketed part cook must be improved. - Options are cooked, cooking, cooks, and no improvement. - The phrase joy of suggests that a gerund form will follow.

Concept / Approach:
Gerunds are verb forms ending in ing that function as nouns. After prepositions like of, English generally uses a gerund, not a base verb or a finite verb. Phrases such as joy of reading, pleasure of travelling, and habit of smoking all follow this pattern. Therefore, in this sentence the correct form after of is cooking, which names the activity that gives joy.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Identify the structure joy of plus verb, where the verb must act like a noun. Step 2: Recall that after the preposition of, the standard form is a gerund like reading, writing, or cooking. Step 3: Among the options, cooking is the gerund form of cook. Step 4: Replace cook with cooking and read the full sentence to confirm that it sounds natural and grammatically correct.

Verification / Alternative check:
The corrected sentence The joy of cooking a meal with freshly grown herbs was boundless is smooth and idiomatic. Similar correct constructions include The joy of helping others is immense and The pleasure of listening to music relaxes the mind. These parallels confirm that cooking is the correct choice here.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option A, cooked, is a past form and would not logically follow of in this structure. Option C, cooks, is a present tense verb and cannot function as a noun after of. Option D, no improvement, would keep cook, which is the base verb and incorrect in this context because it does not match the gerund pattern after a preposition.

Common Pitfalls:
Learners sometimes forget that verbs can act as nouns and choose a finite verb simply because they recognise it. Another common mistake is mixing gerunds and infinitives incorrectly after prepositions. Remembering the simple rule that a verb directly after a preposition almost always appears in the ing form helps prevent such errors.

Final Answer:
cooking is the correct improvement for the bracketed part in the sentence.