An apparatus and method for receiving a signal in a MIMO communication system are provided. In the signal receiving method, a first received signal received at each of the receive antennas is equalized in a predetermined first method. Each of the equalized transmit antenna signals is despread with a plurality of spreading codes used in a transmitter. The strongest transmit antenna signal is detected among the despread transmit antenna signals, and decoded in a predetermined second method, for error verification. The verified strongest transmit antenna signal is reproduced as an interference signal. A second received signal is generated by subtracting the interference signal from the first received signal and equalized in the first method. The above operation is repeated on the equalized transmit antenna signals except the strongest transmit antenna signal.