Wij moeten eerst goed nadenken voordat wij een besluit nemen.

This is a very common Dutch word-order pattern.

In a main clause, the finite verb usually comes in second position. Here, the finite verb is moeten.

• Wij = subject
• moeten = finite verb
• eerst goed nadenken = the rest of the verbal idea

So:

• Wij moeten eerst goed nadenken.

Because moeten is a modal verb, the other verb (nadenken) stays in the infinitive and usually goes toward the end of the clause.

This is similar to English:

• We must think carefully first.

But Dutch keeps that second verb farther to the right.

Because wij is plural, and the verb has to agree with it.

The present tense of moeten is:

• ik moet = I must
• jij/u moet / moet(en) = you must
• hij/zij/het moet = he/she/it must
• wij moeten = we must
• jullie moeten = you all must
• zij moeten = they must

So with wij, you need moeten.

Yes. In everyday Dutch, we is very common and often sounds more natural in speech.

So this sentence is very naturally said as:

• We moeten eerst goed nadenken voordat we een besluit nemen.

The difference is mostly about style and emphasis:

• wij = a bit fuller, sometimes slightly more formal or emphatic
• we = common spoken and neutral written Dutch

Both are correct.

Because nadenken is a verb in its own right. It means to think things over, to reflect, or to think carefully.

It is also a separable verb:

• infinitive: nadenken
• in a simple main clause: Ik denk na.
• with a modal verb: Ik moet nadenken.

So in your sentence:

• Wij moeten eerst goed nadenken

the infinitive stays together as nadenken because it comes after the modal moeten.

Here goed means something like well, carefully, or properly.

So goed nadenken means:

• to think carefully
• to think it through properly

This is one of those places where Dutch uses goed where English would often use well.

So:

• goed nadenken = think carefully / think well

It does not mean that the thinking itself is morally good. It means it is done thoroughly or carefully.

Eerst means first.

In this sentence, it shows order:

• first we think carefully
• after that, we make a decision

So the sentence is structured like:

1. eerst goed nadenken
2. dan een besluit nemen

It emphasizes that thinking should happen before deciding.

Because voordat wij een besluit nemen is a complete clause of its own, and Dutch normally includes the subject in that clause.

So you have:

• main clause: Wij moeten eerst goed nadenken
• subordinate clause: voordat wij een besluit nemen

The second wij belongs to the second clause.

English often works the same way:

• We must think carefully before we make a decision.

You also repeat we there.

Because voordat introduces a subordinate clause, and in Dutch subordinate clauses the conjugated verb usually moves to the end.

So:

• voordat wij een besluit nemen

not:

• voordat wij nemen een besluit

The structure is:

• voordat
  • subject + other elements + verb(s)

Examples:

• voordat ik ga = before I go
• omdat hij ziek is = because he is ill
• als we tijd hebben = if we have time

This verb-final pattern is one of the most important features of Dutch sentence structure.

Because modal verbs in Dutch are followed directly by an infinitive, without te.

Common modal verbs include:

• moeten = must
• kunnen = can
• mogen = may
• willen = want
• zullen = shall / will

So you say:

• Wij moeten nadenken
• Ik kan komen
• Zij wil vertrekken

Not:

• Wij moeten te nadenken

That would be incorrect.

Because this is a full clause with its own subject and conjugated verb.

In:

• voordat wij een besluit nemen

nemen is not an infinitive here. It is the present tense plural form of nemen, agreeing with wij.

Compare:

• wij nemen = we take
• ik neem = I take

So this part literally means:

• before we take a decision

which in natural English is:

• before we make a decision

This is just the normal Dutch expression.

• een besluit nemen = to make a decision

Literally, it looks like to take a decision, but you should learn it as a set phrase.

A few useful related expressions are:

• een besluit nemen = make a decision
• een beslissing nemen = make a decision
• besluiten = to decide

So you could also say:

• Wij moeten eerst goed nadenken voordat wij beslissen.

That is also correct, though the original sentence sounds a bit more formal and deliberate.

Yes, but the difference is small in many contexts.

• besluit often sounds a bit more formal, official, or final
• beslissing is often a more general word for decision

In many everyday sentences, both work:

• een besluit nemen
• een beslissing nemen

Your sentence with besluit sounds slightly more formal or weighty, as if the decision matters.

Yes, it is perfectly natural.

A slightly more everyday version would be:

• We moeten eerst goed nadenken voordat we een besluit nemen.

That version uses we instead of wij, which is more common in normal speech.

But the original sentence is fully correct and natural, especially in careful or slightly formal Dutch.