The Hebrew yether encompasses a range of related meanings: the remainder or residue of something, a cord or bowstring, and more abstractly, excellence, pre-eminence, or abundance. Context determines which nuance is primary in any given text.
The semantic range of yether is instructive: what remains after subtraction, what binds and holds taut, what exceeds the ordinary. In narrative contexts, yether often describes what is left over after judgment — the remnant (yether) of a people or army (Judges 7:3; Isaiah 44:17). In wisdom contexts, it can describe the 'advantage' or 'excellence' a person holds (Proverbs 17:7). Most poetically, it describes the taut bowstring — the cord through which force is directed to the target. Theologically, the remnant theme is especially significant: throughout the prophets, God preserves a yether — a remainder — through every judgment, as evidence that His purposes cannot be wholly defeated.