In the title compound, C 25 H 16 N 2 O 2 , the quinoline ring system is essentially planar, with a maximum deviation of 0.030 (1) Å, and forms a dihedral angle of 20.9 (1)° with benzoyl benzene ring. The unsubstituted phenyl ring forms dihedral angles of 52.7 (1)° with the quinoline ring system and 54.1 (1)° with the ethynyl-substituted benzene ring. The molecule contains an intramolecular bifurcated N—H...(O,N) hydrogen bond, forming S (5) and S (6) rings, which may influence the conformation of the molecule. In the crystal, weak C—H...O hydrogen bonds link the molecules into a three-dimensional network. In addition, the three-dimensional structure contains π–π stacking interactions, with centroid–centroid distances of 3.695 (1) and 3.751 (1) Å.