A dobókocka a bábu mellett van.

Because a is the Hungarian definite article, meaning the.

Hungarian often uses the definite article before both nouns here:

• a dobókocka = the die
• a bábu = the pawn / the game piece

So the sentence literally matches English quite closely: The die is next to the pawn.

A small extra note: Hungarian has two forms of the:

• a before most consonant sounds
• az before vowel sounds

For example:

• a bábu
• az alma

Dobókocka means die as in a gaming die. In everyday speech, people may also say kocka in the right context, but dobókocka is the clear full word.

It is a compound:

• dobó = throwing
• kocka = cube

So it is basically a throwing cube, which became the normal word for a die.

Also, in this sentence it is singular, so it means one die, not dice in the plural sense.

Bábu is a general word for a game piece, pawn, or sometimes a small figure/token used in a game.

Depending on context, it can mean:

• a pawn-like playing piece
• a board-game token
• sometimes a figurine or dummy-like object

In this sentence, the pawn / the game piece is probably the best interpretation.

Mellett means next to, beside, or by.

It comes after the noun because it is a postposition. Hungarian often uses postpositions where English uses prepositions.

So:

• English: next to the pawn
• Hungarian: a bábu mellett = literally the pawn next-to

This is very normal in Hungarian.

Some similar postpositions are:

• alatt = under
• fölött / felett = above
• előtt = in front of / before
• mögött = behind

Because mellett is an independent word, not a suffix.

Hungarian can express location in two common ways:

1. with a case ending
2. with a postposition

Here it uses a postposition:

• a bábu mellett = next to the pawn

The noun bábu itself stays in its basic form here.

Compare that with a case ending example:

• az asztalon = on the table

There, -on is attached directly to asztal. But in your sentence, mellett is a separate word, so no extra case ending is added to bábu.

Van is the 3rd person singular form of to be: is.

In Hungarian, the verb to be is often omitted in the present tense when the predicate is a noun or adjective:

• A bábu piros. = The pawn is red.
• Ez egy dobókocka. = This is a die.

But when you express location, Hungarian normally uses van:

• A dobókocka az asztalon van. = The die is on the table.
• A dobókocka a bábu mellett van. = The die is next to the pawn.

So here van is necessary because the sentence tells you where something is.

No, not in standard Hungarian.

Because this is a location sentence, van is needed:

• A dobókocka a bábu mellett van. = correct

If you removed it, the sentence would sound incomplete or wrong.

This is an important pattern:

• identity / description in present tense: often no van
• location / existence: usually van

Compare:

• A dobókocka nagy. = The die is big.
• A dobókocka itt van. = The die is here.

This is a very natural neutral word order in Hungarian.

A simple way to understand it is:

• A dobókocka = the thing we are talking about
• a bábu mellett = the location
• van = is

So the sentence is structured like:

The die + next to the pawn + is

Hungarian word order is flexible, but it is strongly connected to topic and focus, not just fixed subject-verb-object order like English.

This version sounds neutral: As for the die, it is next to the pawn.

Yes, that is possible.

Both sentences can mean the same thing, but the emphasis changes a little.

• A dobókocka a bábu mellett van.
  Neutral if you are talking about the die.

• A bábu mellett van a dobókocka.
  This can sound more like you are first setting the scene next to the pawn, and then saying what is there: the die.

Hungarian word order often shifts to match what is already known and what is being highlighted.

In most situations, both are fine translations.

Mellett generally means that something is at the side of something else, close by.

Depending on context, English might use:

• next to
• beside
• by

So:

• A dobókocka a bábu mellett van. could be translated as:
  • The die is next to the pawn.
  • The die is beside the pawn.

Usually next to is the most straightforward choice for learners.

This is a very useful distinction.

• mellett = next to / beside in a static location
• mellé = to next to / to beside showing movement toward

So:

• A dobókocka a bábu mellett van.
  = The die is next to the pawn.

But:

• A dobókockát a bábu mellé teszem.
  = I put the die next to the pawn.

A common Hungarian pattern is:

• hol? = where? → static location
• hová? = to where? → movement toward

Here, because nothing is moving, mellett is correct.

If both nouns are plural, you could say:

A dobókockák a bábuk mellett vannak.

That means The dice are next to the pawns / game pieces.

Changes:

• dobókocka → dobókockák = dice
• bábu → bábuk = pawns / pieces
• van → vannak = are

So Hungarian marks plural on the nouns, and the verb also changes.

A rough pronunciation guide is:

aw DOH-boh-koh-tsah aw BAA-boo MEL-lett vawn

A few helpful notes:

• á is a long vowel, roughly like aa
• ó is also long
• cs is pronounced like English ch
• ell in mellett has a clear l-l
• stress in Hungarian is always on the first syllable of each word:
  • DObókocka
  • BAAbu
  • MELlett

So the natural stress pattern is very regular.

Yes. Using a shows that both nouns are definite: you mean a specific die and a specific pawn/piece.

If the meaning were more indefinite, Hungarian could use egy for a/an:

• Egy dobókocka egy bábu mellett van.

That would mean something like A die is next to a pawn, though in real usage Hungarian often phrases indefinite sentences in different ways depending on context.

So in your original sentence, a makes it clear that the speaker has particular objects in mind.