Learn Hardcore Turkish: Sadece plan yapmak değil, aynı zamanda uygulamak da önemli. - It’s important not only to make a plan, but also to implement it.

Sadece X değil, (aynı zamanda) Y de … It directly corresponds to English “Not only X, but (also) Y …”. The aynı zamanda part is optional for this meaning; it adds the sense of “also/at the same time.”

Why is değil there if we aren’t negating önemli (“important”)?

In this construction, değil negates the limiter sadece (“only”), not the adjective önemli. Think of it as: “It’s not only planning that is important; implementing is important too.”

What does da do in uygulamak da and where should it go?

The clitic da/de means “also/too.” It attaches (as a separate word) right after the element it focuses. Here, uygulamak da signals “implementing is also (important).” If you moved it, you’d change the focus:

Aynı zamanda uygulamak da önemli. (default: “implementing too”)
Aynı zamanda da uygulamak önemli. (slightly shifts “also” toward the time phrase; still acceptable) Avoid putting it after önemli here; … önemli de sounds like a different, contrastive use.

Are the two “-da”s in the sentence the same?

No:

zamanda = zaman + da is the locative suffix “in/at,” attached to the noun (written together).
uygulamak da uses the clitic da/de meaning “also,” written separately.

How do I choose between da and de (the “also” clitic)?

Use vowel harmony with the last vowel of the preceding word:

Front vowel (e, i, ö, ü) → de: ben de, şehir de
Back vowel (a, ı, o, u) → da: o da, yarın da, uygulamak da Unlike the locative suffix, the clitic never becomes ta/te.

Why are the verbs in the -mak/-mek form?

That’s the infinitive used as a verbal noun (gerund) to serve as the subject: plan yapmak (“making a plan”), uygulamak (“implementing”). It’s the most neutral, general way to nominalize an action.

Could I use the -ma/-me nominalization instead?

You could: Sadece plan yapma değil, aynı zamanda uygulama da önemli. This sounds more like “the act/practice of …,” and note uygulama is also a common noun (“practice,” “application,” even “app”), so context matters. The -mak form is cleaner and more general here.

Can I say planlamak instead of plan yapmak?

Yes: Sadece planlamak değil, aynı zamanda uygulamak da önemli.

plan yapmak = “to make a plan” (very common collocation)
planlamak = “to plan” (more concise/formal). Both are natural.

Where is the verb “to be”? Should there be olmak?

Turkish uses a zero copula in the present: adjectives can be predicates without an explicit “to be.” … önemli means “is/are important.” You can add -dır/-dir for formality or generalization: önemlidir.

Is the comma before aynı zamanda necessary?

It’s standard and recommended in this correlative structure to reflect the pause: Sadece X değil, Y (de) … You’ll often see it.

Can I drop aynı zamanda?

Yes. Sadece plan yapmak değil, uygulamak da önemli. is fully natural. Aynı zamanda adds a stylistic “also/at the same time” emphasis.

Are there alternative ways to express this idea?

Common variants:

Hem plan yapmak hem de uygulamak önemli.
Plan yapmak da uygulamak da önemli.
More formal: Sadece plan yapmak değil, aynı zamanda uygulamak da önemlidir.

Does da/de have to come right after the word it modifies?

Yes. As a clitic, it follows the focused word or phrase:

Uygulamak da önemli. (focus: implementing)
Aynı zamanda da uygulamak önemli. (shifts “also” to the time phrase) Don’t place it far from its focus.

Is aynı zamanda literally “at the same time”? Does it always mean that?

Literally yes (“in the same time,” with locative -da). Idiomatically, it often means “also/in addition,” which is exactly how it works here.

Why don’t plan yapmak and uygulamak take any case endings?

As general, non-specific subjects in a generic statement, they stay in the bare (nominative) form: Plan yapmak … önemli. If you specified something (e.g., a particular plan), case marking could appear in different structures, but not in this generic claim.

Is yalnızca or yalnız interchangeable with sadece here?

Yes:

Yalnızca/Yalnız plan yapmak değil, aynı zamanda uygulamak da önemli. Note that yalnız also means “alone/only,” so in other contexts it can be ambiguous; sadece is the safest all-purpose “only.”