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Gli apribottiglie sono vicino ai guardaroba.

Gli apribottiglie sono vicino ai guardaroba.
The bottle openers are near the cloakrooms.
From Lesson 270:Plural compound nouns·Italian

Questions & Answers about Gli apribottiglie sono vicino ai guardaroba.

Why doesn't 'apribottiglie' change its ending in the plural?
Apribottiglie is a compound noun made of a verb (apri, from aprire, to open) and a noun that is already plural (bottiglie, bottles). Compound nouns formed by a verb and a plural noun are invariable, meaning their spelling doesn't change in the plural. You just change the article from l' to gli.
Why is 'guardaroba' also invariable in the plural?
Guardaroba (cloakroom or wardrobe) is made of a verb (guarda) and a feminine singular noun (roba, meaning stuff or clothes). When a compound noun is formed by a verb and a feminine singular noun, it usually stays exactly the same in the plural. Therefore, il guardaroba simply becomes i guardaroba.
Wait, if 'roba' is feminine, why is it 'ai guardaroba' (masculine) instead of 'alle guardaroba'?
Even though roba is feminine, compound nouns made of a verb plus an object are almost always masculine, regardless of the gender of the noun inside them. Because guardaroba as a whole is masculine, it takes masculine articles. The preposition a combines with the masculine plural article i to make ai.
Why do we use 'vicino ai' instead of just 'vicino i'?
In Italian, the word vicino (near) must be followed by the preposition a when pointing to a noun. Since we need to say 'near out to the cloakrooms', a + i combines into the articulated preposition ai.

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