Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Cyphonism \Cyph"o*nism\ (s?f`?-n?z'm or s?"f?-), n. [Gr. ????,
   fr. ???? a crooked piece of wood, a sort of pillory, fr. ???
   bent, stooping.]
   A punishment sometimes used by the ancients, consisting in
   the besmearing of the criminal with honey, and exposing him
   to insects. It is still in use among some Oriental nations.