Lifeless ode, now rewritten (6)
I believe the answer is:
wooden
'lifeless' is the definition.
(thesaurus)
'ode now rewritten' is the wordplay.
'rewritten' indicates anagramming the letters.
'ode'+'now'='odenow'
'odenow' with letters rearranged gives 'WOODEN'.
(Other definitions for wooden that I've seen before include "Stiff as a board (when acting?)" , "clumsy" , "Awkward, like a tree?" , "Made of timber - lacking animation" , "Stilted; made from tree" .)