A control apparatus for an internal combustion engine is configured to execute an air-fuel ratio control based on an output of an air-fuel ratio detector provided in an exhaust passage through which exhaust gas from a plurality of cylinders flows. The control apparatus includes an abnormal lean deviation detection portion configured to detect whether an abnormal lean deviation is occurring in at least one specific cylinder among the plurality of cylinders, the exhaust gas from the at least one specific cylinder influencing the air-fuel ratio detector more strongly than the exhaust gas from each of a rest of the plurality of cylinders; and an enriching control portion configured to execute an enriching control for the at least one specific cylinder when the abnormal lean deviation detection portion detects that the abnormal lean deviation is occurring in the at least one specific cylinder.