A short and facile synthesis of a series of 1,2-dihydroquiazolin-4(3H)-ones was accomplished in good yields via novel reductive cyclization of o-nitrobenzamides with ketones promoted by TiCl4/Zn system. The structure was established on the basis of elemental analysis, IR, 1H NMR and confirmed by a single-crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. This method has the advantages of easily accessible starting materials, convenient manipulation and moderate to high yields.