Puts effort into scores (5)
I believe the answer is:
tries
'puts' is the definition.
The definition and answer can be both acts as well as being plural nouns.
Maybe there's an association between them I don't understand?
I don't understand the remainder of the clue.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for tries that I've seen before include "Attempts" , "Scoring moves in rugby" .)