also: がへい
something useless; pie in the sky
Literally 'picture of rice cakes,' used metaphorically for something that looks good but has no practical value or cannot be realized. Often appears in the set phrase 画餅に帰す (to come to nothing).
See also: 画餅に帰す (がべいにきす)
That plan ended up being just a pie in the sky.
His dream was nothing more than a castle in the air.
Standard kanji form; the reading がべい is the most common.
Alternate reading; less common than がべい.
From Chinese 畫餅 (huàbǐng), literally 'drawn rice cake,' a metaphor for something that cannot satisfy real needs. The Japanese reading がべい is the go-on reading of the characters.