Learn Hardcore Turkish: Sonuçta herkes insan; küçük hataları kibarca düzeltelim. - After all, everyone is human; let’s correct small mistakes politely.

It’s an adverb meaning “after all,” “ultimately,” or “in the end.” It’s built from sonuç (result) + the locative -ta (“in/at”), used adverbially to present a conclusion or justification. It softens what follows and frames it as a reasonable stance. Close alternatives: sonuç olarak, nihayetinde, neticede.

Why is there a semicolon (;) instead of a comma or a period?

Both parts are independent clauses that are tightly connected in meaning. In Turkish, a semicolon, like in English, neatly links closely related sentences. A period would also be fine. A comma before an independent clause is less formal and often avoided in careful writing; you’d usually choose a semicolon, a period, or add a linker like bu yüzden, o yüzden, çünkü (with a rearranged structure).

Why is it Herkes insan and not Herkes insandır or Herkes bir insan?

Herkes insan: Present equational sentences often drop the copula; this is the most neutral, colloquial statement of classification.
Herkes insandır: The -dır copular ending adds formality/emphasis or “statement of general truth” flavor.
Herkes bir insan: Emphasizes “an individual human (just a human),” often used when stressing fallibility or ordinariness. It’s possible but less neutral than the version given.

Could I say Herkes de insan?

Yes. The clitic de/da means “also/too,” so Herkes de insan adds a slight emphasis: “everyone is human too.” It’s optional and used for contrast or emphasis.

Why is it küçük hataları (with -ı) and not küçük hatalar?

küçük hataları is accusative-marked and thus specific/definite: “the small mistakes (in question).” It implies the ones we encounter or have in mind.
küçük hatalar (no accusative) is indefinite/generic: “small mistakes (in general/some).” Here, the accusative suggests the contextually known small mistakes people make.

Could küçük hataları mean “their small mistakes”?

Yes, morphologically hata-lar-ı can be 3rd person possessive (“his/her/their mistakes”) or accusative plural (“the mistakes”). Disambiguation:

If it were possessed and also accusative, you’d see küçük hatalarını.
Without a possessive pronoun like onların, readers generally take küçük hataları here as “the small mistakes (we encounter).” Context (after talking about “everyone”) also supports a generic reading.

What does düzeltelim express exactly?

It’s the 1st person plural imperative/optative: “let’s correct.” Structure: verb stem düzelt- + -elim (harmonizes as -elim/-alım). Other imperative forms:

2sg: düzelt (correct!)
2pl/polite: düzeltin
3sg: düzeltsin
1pl (inclusive suggestion): düzeltelim (“let’s correct”)

How can I make it more tentative (“shall we…?”) or negative (“let’s not…”)?

Tentative suggestion: Kibarca düzeltelim mi? (“Shall we correct [them] politely?”)
Negative: Kibarca düzeltmeyelim. (“Let’s not correct [them] politely.”) You can combine both: Kibarca düzeltmeyelim mi? (“Shall we not correct them politely?”)

What does kibarca add, and how is it formed?

It means “politely,” formed by adding the adverbial suffix -ca/-ce/-ça/-çe to kibar (“polite”): kibar + -ca → kibarca (“in a polite manner”). A common paraphrase is kibar bir şekilde. Near-synonym: nazikçe.

Can I move kibarca elsewhere in the sentence?

Yes, adverbs are flexible:

Neutral: Küçük hataları kibarca düzeltelim. (object → manner → verb)
Emphasize manner: Kibarca küçük hataları düzeltelim.
End position is possible in speech but less typical for manner adverbs: Küçük hataları düzeltelim kibarca. (feels added-on)

Is herkes grammatically singular or plural?

Singular. Verbs and predicates agree in the 3rd person singular:

Herkes geldi. (“Everyone came.”) Using plural agreement (Herkes geldiler) is nonstandard; stick to singular in standard Turkish.

Should there be a comma after Sonuçta?

You can write Sonuçta, herkes insan. with a comma after an initial sentence adverb—many do. In the given sentence, the semicolon immediately follows the first clause, so a comma after Sonuçta would feel redundant. With a period instead of a semicolon, a comma after Sonuçta is stylistically fine.

Are there more idiomatic ways to say “small/minor mistakes”?

Yes:

ufak tefek hatalar(ı): very common, colloquial “minor, little” mistakes
küçük hatalar(ı): neutral “small mistakes”
ufak hatalar(ı): similar to küçük All can take accusative -ı if you intend them as definite.

Is düzeltmek the right verb for “to correct,” not “to verify”?

Correct. düzeltmek = “to correct/fix/set right (an error).” doğrulamak means “to verify/confirm,” which is different. For “to fix (a text),” you can also see the formal tashih etmek in publishing contexts, but düzeltmek is the everyday choice.