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Dreams express one meaning. We have the ability to interpret dreams into many different meanings; but to then say that the dream "means" all of these is a basic error of self-centered interpretation.

It seems that dreams are a side-effect deeper communication that happens within us. The story we get as a dreamer reflects the inner perspective of one of the communicators. Imagine it like this:

John talks with Amy about something. While they talk, John daydreams. These daydreams have to do with the conversation, and what it means to him, but sometimes they will be more strongly related to the topic, and sometimes less.

We are not able to hear the conversation; we do not know the topic; but we are tapped into John's daydreams. From John's daydreams, we can sometimes figure out what the topic is and what he and Amy are saying about it. On the other hand, sometimes we can't.

When John finishes the conversation, wraps up and "walks out," we are no longer in touch with his daydreaming. But Amy has been daydreaming too, and sometimes she'll have something still on her mind when John walks out.
Perhaps you have had dreams in which the scene changes suddenly, as if you had jumped into the point of view of another character or you had even changed channel to a different movie completely. That's often what that is: one dreaming party finished the intrapsychic communication and "logged off," causing another to take center stage.

DREAMING IS ALWAYS HEALTHY
Most of the time people come to dream interpretation because they had a specific troublesome dream -- about someone dying; about an affair with a stranger, when they are happily married; about the end of the world; and so on.
The most important thing to keep in mind at all times is that dreaming is almost never about the outside world: it's about the inward self. Even when it is about the outside world, it's usually about the outside world in the ways our inward self responds strongly to it.

Dreams are inner communication between different parts of ourselves. The 'bandwidth' that our mind can use for vivid communication is our senses. So, when the different parts of ourselves have the opportunity to communicate with one another during sleep, they send messages through the senses, and that makes the information seemingly about the outside world.

Just as when we talk to ourselves we sometimes reassure ourselves and sometimes accuse ourselves, sometimes affirm we are right and sometimes argue back and forth, so our dreams are sometimes enjoyable and sometimes frightening.

It depends on what's on our mind and what's gotten us stirred-up.

To dream of someone's death, or sex with a stranger, or any of these things, is simply the sensory-based communication between two parts of ourselves that we, our conscious minds, 'evesdropped on' during our dream. It represents the emotions and symbolism of that specific conversation.

(That doesn't mean you can't have dreams about things going on outside you; but even dreams that talk about outside stuff are primarily about how they influence you on the inside.)

For example, imagine a part of you was evesdropping during a telephone conversation with your friend, and laughing you told your friend, "You're killing me." What a strange thing, to laugh while someone kills you!

This is why dreams are so peculiar: we only have one perspective of the communication, and it's that communicator's inward perspective.