In a cellular-type communication system, a receiving apparatus of a mobile station which has received a forward control channel message recovers word synchronization of the received data. More particularly, the receiving apparatus converts serial FOCC data into a 8-bit parallel data signal while generating 8-bit parallel synchronization data indicative of a word synchronizing position in the parallel data above, and thus applies these two parallel data to a microcomputer. The microcomputer detects the synchronizing position of the synchronization data and then determines effectiveness of those data among the data signal that follow the corresponding bit position, for storing them in a memory.