Big Bang Theory star Mayim Bialik has a big problem with grown women being referred to as 'girls'.

The 41-year-old Ph.D.-holding actress said in a new video that she doesn't necessarily think people who use the word have bad or sexist intentions — but she does think the language is ingrained in our society in such a way that it is harmful.

In the clip, the star speaks frankly about her feelings, offering a detailed argument for why people might want to rethink their choice of words when speaking about the female sex.

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Choose your words wisely: Mayim Bialik released a new video in which she explains the problem with calling grown women 'girls'

Video courtesy of Mayim Bialik

'I'm gonna be annoying right now, because I want to talk about something that a lot of people don't want to talk about,' she says at the start of the video, which she shared on YouTube and Facebook last week.

She sets the scene with an anecdote, recalling being at a bar recently with two male friends, both of whom are about her age.

'One of them said to the other, "Oh my god, dude, look at that girl sitting at the bar. She's beautiful,"' Mayim remembers.

'And I start looking around wondering why they would let a child into a bar. Then I realized that when he said girl, he meant woman. But since she's in that super narrow age range between five years old and 55 years old, we just don't know what to call her, so we call her a girl.'

This is clearly something that has bothered Mayim for some time, and she says so plainly.

Thinking it through: The Big Bang Theory star said even when there are no negative intentions, there are negative consequences to such language

'We have to stop calling women girls,' she says. 'Why? Because it matters what we call people. Language matters. Words have meaning. And the way we use words changes the way we frame things in our mind.'

She directs viewers to Google the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis — a theory that says, according to Dictionary.com, that the 'structure of a language determines or greatly influences the modes of thought and behavior characteristic of the culture in which it is spoken.'

She explains: 'So when we use words to describe adult women that are typically used to describe children, it changes the way we view women, even unconsciously, so that we don't equate them with adult men. In fact, it implies that they're inferior to men.'

She knows that many people who refer to grown women as girls aren't trying to diminish them — but ultimately, she says, collectively using that language just does that.

The 41-year-old added that people rarely refer to men as 'boys' because it would be considered degrating

'Even if that's not what most people intend, words have an impact on our unconscious,' she says.

Mayim notes that the situation is rarely reversed, and almost no one would call a grown man a boy because it would be 'demeaning' and 'emasculating'.

'Are there women who don't mind being seen as diminutive because they think that men should be in charge and that they should be tender and delicate? Of course,' she admits. But to these women, she has a message.

'There is a thing that happens when we grow up in the kind of male-centered culture that we live in,' she says. 'We start to believe that the way things are is the way they have to be. We start taking on the biases and judgments of women which have been in place since an historical time when women were respected or even allowed into the public sphere.

Setting the record straight: She said she often corrects people with a smile

'The terms we're using for women are outdated and insensitive and they assume a structure of power where men are on the top and women are on the bottom.'

As for the people who call women girls, she says: 'I know your intentions are probably good, but I hope you can learn to see the unintended and negative impact.

'The thing we need to start doing as women ... is to consistently, gently, kindly, and politely correct people when they call women girls.'

Here, Mayim jokes that she has found ways to do this that make people seem receptive — at least to her face, though she admits they may hate her when she walks away

'I'll sometimes say things like, 'She's got a full-time job and a 150 people on payroll. I'm pretty sure she's a woman", and I'll smile.'

Backing it up: Mayim also references a scientific theory about the impact language has on perceptions

'Language sets expectations,' she concludes Let's set ourselves up to have women behave like mature, responsible women. In this way we encourage women to keep being the complicated, wonderful, unique, gifted beings that they are.'

Comments on the video have been full of debate. Many people have applauded her for speaking so succinctly about the issue, though a few have accused her of making an issue out of nothing. Interestingly, many of those critics called her a 'girl' in their comments — either consciously or unconsciously proving her point.

'Relax, Girls!!! Girl doesn't mean you're six years old. It's just a word, is it that insulting? Mayim I love you but try to stop over thinking,' wrote one man — who another commenter soon accused of mansplaining.

A woman who told her that there are bigger issues to tackle added: 'I'm a lot older than you and to me you are a sweet, very intelligent, talented girl.'