To study the evolution of acoustic emission (AE) parameters and the differences in the fracturing and failure process of rocks under different loading modes, AE signals of marble were detected during uniaxial compression tests (UCTs), direct tensile tests (DTTs) and indirect tensile tests (ITTs) in this paper. Then, the temporal and spatial evolution of the AE parameters and damage development of rock under different loading modes were analyzed. The results showed that the sequence of total AE events and AE counts under different loading modes was UCT > DTT > ITT. In the DTT and ITT, the energy release of AE signals was concentrated at the peak stress and weakened rapidly afterward, whereas in the UCT, there were still a large number of AE signals accompanied by violent AE energy release during the postpeak stage. The generation mechanism of AE sources in rock and the corresponding failure modes were different under different loading modes. In the UCT, the multiple cleavage fractures were mainly caused by compression-induced fracturing. In the DTT, the single fracture surface was generated by tensile stress, whereas in the ITT, compressive-tensile stress was applied to the fracture surface. In addition, the stress levels at which the b-value and the spatial fractal dimension D_s of AE events decreased dramatically were consistent under the different loading modes, and the sequence was UCT < DTT < ITT. According to the changes in AE parameters during the whole process of rock deformation and failure, the first and second precursor points before failure were defined to distinguish the development of microfracture damage and failure processes in rocks under the different loading modes. The above results have certain significance for future studies on the monitoring of surrounding rock instability and failure prediction.