  We present new data on the pressure dependence at 300 K of the optical
reflectivity of CeTe$_3$, which undergoes a charge-density-wave (CDW) phase
transition well above room temperature. The collected data cover an
unprecedented broad spectral range from the infrared up to the ultraviolet,
which allows a robust determination of the gap as well as of the fraction of
the Fermi surface affected by the formation of the CDW condensate. Upon
compressing the lattice there is a progressive closing of the gap inducing a
transfer of spectral weight from the gap feature into the Drude component. At
frequencies above the CDW gap we also identify a power-law behavior, consistent
with findings along the $R$Te$_3$ series (i.e., chemical pressure) and
suggestive of a Tomonaga-Luttinger liquid scenario at high energy scales. This
newest set of data is placed in the context of our previous investigations of
this class of materials and allows us to revisit important concepts for the
physics of CDW state in layered-like two-dimensional systems.
